1:28 pm, February 2, 2024
Two ex-company directors accused of fraud over car leasing scheme Buy2Let Cars have made their first appearance in court.
Reginald Larry-Cole, 53, and Scott Martin, 45, went before Westminster JPs yesterday following an investigation by the Serious Fraud Office into suspected fraud in relation to the activities of Raedex Consortium, which includes Buy2Let Cars, PayGo Cars, Raedex trading as Wheels4Sure and Rent2Own Cars from 2012 to 2021.
The men are both charged with three counts of fraud by false representation, contrary to the Fraud Act 2006, sections 1(2) and 2(1).
No pleas were entered and the duo were bailed to appear at Southwark Crown Court on February 29 for another hearing, the SFO told Car Dealer, although because of the backlog of cases it’s likely that theirs could take up to a year to be heard.
Solicitor General Robert Courts KC, who is the MP for Witney and West Oxfordshire, mentioned the case in Parliament yesterday:
The SFO said Buy2Let Cars Ltd ran for nine years, offering investments in a fleet of cars from brands including Hyundai, Toyota and Vauxhall, to be bought and leased out to the public with the promise of high levels of returns.
It attracted some £88m from hundreds of British savers. The scheme was widely marketed via a series of TV, radio and newspaper adverts, as well as at hotel conferences around the country, as seen below.
A promotional image for one of the investment seminars. Credit: Serious Fraud Office
During the pandemic, Buy2Let Cars’ vehicles were promoted as a safe way for key workers to get to work, said the SFO.
The duo are accused of providing those who signed up – many of them first-time investors – with false information, encouraging people to pay in while knowing that investments were not in reality backed up by the cars they had been promised.
The SFO’s investigation was announced in April 2021 and heard from hundreds of investors.
Raedex Consortium Ltd went into administration in March 2021.
The Financial Conduct Authority previously imposed a number of restrictions on the consortium, requiring it to cease conducting regulated activities because of concerns about its finances.
According to Companies House, the correspondence address for Buy2Let Cars was 25 Farringdon Street in London.
Main image credit: Jordan Pettitt/PA Archive/PA Images
