Topics: Crime

  • New Vaping Products Duty comes into effect

    A new excise duty on vaping products has come into force in the UK today (1 October 2026) to reduce the affordability and appeal of vaping, especially to young people and non-smokers.

    HMRC graphic about Vaping Products Duty with three vaping devices.

  • Arms dealers sentenced to 32 years in jail

    A British businessman has been jailed for 16 years after brokering illegal deals involving fighter jets and weapons destined for war zones including Sudan, South Sudan and Libya. David Greenhalgh, 68, of Croydon, south London, helped broker the supply of ex-Soviet jets, surface-to-air missile systems, anti-tank missiles, thousands of assault rifles and other controlled goods between 2009 & 2016.

    David Greenhalgh

  • New HMRC enforcement blitz means nowhere to run for dodgy high street businesses

    Chancellor John Healey is urging people to report tax fraud as HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) ramps up its work to tackle illegal activity on the high street. The improved Report Tax Fraud service on GOV.UK makes it easier than ever to ‘shop' high street businesses they suspect are involved in fraud, from vape shops to barber shops.

    HMRC officer carrying out checks on a high street shop

  • New support materials for Strengthened Reward Scheme for informants

    New HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) videos are making it easier for informants to report serious tax fraud and avoidance through the Strengthened Reward Scheme.
    A recorded webinar and short explainer video provide practical guidance on how to report tax wrongdoing and what information HMRC needs.
    Informants may be eligible for a financial reward if the information they provide leads to HMRC re

    HMRC campaign graphic promoting rewards for reporting tax fraud.

  • Tax Minister to owners of dodgy shops: “We are coming for you”

    HMRC made unannounced visits to six souvenir shops across central London this week, as it significantly scales up its work to tackle illegal activity on the high street. Officers from HMRC were joined by colleagues from Home Office Immigration Enforcement, Westminster Council Trading Standards and the Metropolitan Police. The teams checked shops selling royal family, London and UK-themed gifts.

  • Arms dealer guilty of illegal weapons deals

    A British businessman has been found guilty of brokering illegal deals involving fighter jets and weapons destined for war zones including Sudan, South Sudan and Libya . David Greenhalgh, 68, of Croydon, south London, helped broker the supply of ex-Soviet jets, surface-to-air missile systems, anti-tank missiles, thousands of assault rifles and other controlled goods between 2009 and 2016.

  • Two arrested for suspected £153 million TikTok tax scam

    Two men suspected of using TikTok in an alleged multi-million pound tax fraud have been arrested by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). Cybercrime investigators arrested the pair in East London after blocking £153 million of suspected fraudulent claims that are thought to have used personal tax details from TikTok users.

  • Smuggling gang jailed

    A gang that smuggled 150 million illegal cigarettes has been sentenced following a massive HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) surveillance operation.

  • Payroll fraudsters jailed for 22 years

    The bosses of a corrupt payroll company that stole millions of pounds of VAT have been jailed for more than 22 years. West Lothian-based Linear Services handled payroll for 27 employment agencies but didn’t hand over VAT they owed to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) during a two-year fraud. Graeme Cullen, Leslie Thompson, Graham Newall and Martin Lang ran the firm that charged VAT on invoices.

  • Secret tobacco factory dismantled

    One of Northern Ireland’s biggest ever illegal tobacco factories has been dismantled after a raid in Newry.

  • Wanted tax fugitive jailed for money laundering

    A money launderer who fled during his 2018 trial has been extradited from the Netherlands and jailed for five-and-a-half years. Javed Ahmad was caught trying to stuff more than £100,000 in a filing cabinet when HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) officers raided his Burnley office in November 2015.

  • Crooked accountant who stole from staff jailed

    A crooked accountant who abused his position to orchestrate a £1.7 million tax fraud - spending the stolen cash on lavish holidays and cars - has been jailed for four years.

  • HMRC probes suspected tax evasion bank customers

    Hundreds of UK customers of a collapsed Puerto Rican bank linked to tax evasion and money laundering are being given a chance to check and correct their tax affairs. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is currently writing to around 600 people in the UK who used the Euro Pacific Bank (EPB) urging them to check their tax position and make any corrections to their tax affairs.

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