FCA bans six over £4.3m investment scam

Between July 2008 and November 2011, the group were involved in the operation of a "landbanking" investment scheme through three companies: Plott Investments Ltd, which changed its name to Plott UK Ltd; European Property Investments (UK) Ltd, and Stirling Alexander Ltd.

Salesmen for the companies cold-called potential investors to sell them agricultural land that the companies had bought for minimal amounts as well as land the companies did not own. Using sales scripts, misleading promotional material, and high-pressure sales techniques they lied about the current and future value of the land. People were persuaded to purchase land at a vastly inflated price, on the false promise of a substantial profit.

The scheme led to over 100 investors losing just under £4.3 million and the individuals who operated the scheme received sentences totalling more than 30 years.

Scott Crawley, Daniel Forsyth, Adam Hawkins, Ross Peters, Aaron Petrou and Dale Walker were convicted of a string of offences in April 2015.

These included carrying out a regulated activity without authorisation, possessing criminal property, conspiracy to defraud, and providing information knowing it to be false or misleading.

Walker, the solicitor to the scheme, received nearly £900,000 of the proceeds of crime into his accounts, and was described by the Judge in sentencing remarks as having 'deliberately frustrated and delayed the FCA’s investigations.'

In sentencing, Judge Leonard QC described the scheme as a 'very substantial and deliberate fraud on the public.' He stated that the operation was 'a subtle and cruel fraud because it involves the concept of owning land, a commodity that the public are bound to think has value and on which they cannot lose and on which they can easily be persuaded that they can make very substantial profits.'