Revenue and Customs raid in Bingham

Two men were arrested in dawn raids yesterday morning on suspicion of attempting to steal £1.97m through false VAT.

The raids relate to an investigation into the sale of large screen electronic advertising space.

HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) arrested one man in Bingham and one man from Staffordshire.

Both were bailed until February.

The man arrested in Bingham is 39. A business and residential address were searched as part of the raid.

It follows the arrest of three people in May 2011, who were bailed until December 13.

Adrian Farley, assistant director of criminal investigation for HMRC, said: “Yesterday’s arrests are a result of our investigations to disrupt and prevent what is believed to be a major VAT fraud.

"One of our key priorities is to identify the abuse of our tax systems by organised crime gangs stealing vast amounts of public money for their own gain.”