“The annual losses to the UK from fraud are estimated to be more than £190 billion."
Sandeep Arora is suspected of committing multi-million tax fraud. The 42-year-old is previously known to be living in Beckton, East London.
The film producer, known as Karan Arora in Bollywood, has been added to the UK’s Top 10 Most Wanted Alleged Fraudster list, claiming over £4.5 million in VAT and Film Tax rebates.
According to the London Police and National Crime Agency (NCA), Arora has claimed the tax and VAT on films that either were never produced or he had no participation in.
Donald Toon, director of the NCA’s Economic Crime Command, says: “The annual losses to the UK from fraud are estimated to be more than £190 billion.
“Behind this headline figure lie the actions of criminals like the wanted fraudsters [Sandeep Arora included].”
Arora established his own production company, Fine Tune, in offices in Central London between 2007 and 2011, through which he made the fraudulent claims.
Some of the films that Arora claimed for include Billy the Beagle, Kuan Bola, Aagosh, London Dreams, Kia the Dream Girl and Trapped. None of these films were real or of Arora’s own producing.
The Most Wanted Alleged Fraudster list is part of a new UK fraud suppression plan launched by then home secretary and current Prime Minister, Theresa May, in February 2016.
The list has been compiled as a result of The Joint Fraud Task Force in response to the continuous growth of fraud and cyber-crime.
The 10 criminals added to the list are accused of owing more that £20 million between them.
Ian Dyson, London police commissioner, comments: “The City of London Police has learnt that the key to combating fraud is government, law enforcement and business working together to bring criminals to justice and also design out the opportunities for them to commit crime in the first place.”
In October 2014, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had seized Arora’s properties after they had first found out about the alleged tax fraud.
He had previously been investigated for claiming tax through a special scheme meant to promote documentary films on social and cultural issues.
These documents he claimed for where, again, never made.
Sandeep Arora is currently believed to be in India and the Indian government have been asked to trace the con-artist.
The police appeal adds that he is ‘highly likely’ to commit similar crimes until he is caught.
Toon says: “Law enforcement cannot tackle this alone.
“It is important that anyone able to provide information on the 10 fraudsters we are highlighting today takes the opportunity to pass that information to law enforcement to help bring them to justice.”
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