Man, wife & 3 children jailed for tax evasion

John Coffey

Five members of a family who avoided paying £500,000 in taxes and fraudulently claimed £100,000 in benefits have been sentenced. John and Brigid Coffey and their children Michael, Mary and Helen, were earning millions from two resurfacing and block paving businesses. John Coffey was jailed for two years and nine months while his wife was given a suspended sentence. Their children were given suspended sentences of between six and 12 months. Bristol Crown Court was told while John and Michael Coffey deliberately laundered the money to avoid paying taxes, the female members of the family claimed thousands of pounds in benefits. This was despite the family owning property and a number of expensive cars, the court was told. The family, who lived in south Wales and Gloucestershire, dealt mostly in cash with John and Michael Coffey declaring an income of £250 a week between them. What is overwhelmingly clear in this case is that each one of you is dishonest. There can be no excuses for your behaviour” During a police interview, John Coffey claimed their money came from block paving, horses and "general wheeling and dealing". Jailing Coffey, Judge David Ticehurst told him he must repay £450,000 within six months. Michael Coffey, who avoided paying £50,000 in tax, was handed a sentence of 12 months imprisonment suspended for two years. He was also told he would have to repay the money. "It's individuals like you that give the travelling community a bad name," Judge Ticehurst said. "None of us likes paying taxes but society functions on the fact that people pay money to the revenue. "You, however, choose not to pay tax and to falsely claim benefits of which you were not entitled. "What is overwhelmingly clear in this case is that each one of you is dishonest. There can be no excuses for your behaviour," he added. The investigation began in October 2006 at a travellers' site in Gloucestershire which was raided in January 2007. A year later search warrants were executed in West Drayton, and at two farms and two separate properties in Cardiff. In April 2009 they were charged with a total of 38 offences, including cheating the public revenue, benefit fraud and money laundering. Then in 2010 a series of court appearances saw the five enter guilty pleas to a total of 20 charges. Culled from BBC