Two Glasgow restaurateurs behind popular venues including Cranside Kitchen, Pickled Ginger and Halloumi have been jailed after admitting a large‑scale VAT fraud worth £682,882. Their long‑time accountant, a well‑known SNP supporter, has also admitted recklessly submitting false VAT returns and will be sentenced at a later date.
Antonio Carbajosa, and Kevin Campbell, ran a group of restaurants and takeaways across Glasgow under companies including Cyprus Leisure, Rotunda Leisure, Lookoil, Catering 58, Beachfront, Seaside 41, South Promenade and La Reguera. The High Court in Glasgow heard the pair “acted together in a co‑ordinated way” to “suppressed” the true value of sales declared to HMRC over several years.
Prosecutor Wojciech Jajdelski told the court: “Carbajosa and Campbell did not comply with the VAT requirements in order to profit, in the longer term, from their restaurant businesses by not accounting for all of the VAT due to HMRC.” He added: “As a result of not all VAT due being paid to HMRC, the companies were more profitable than they would otherwise have been.”
Profiting from unpaid tax
The Crown said the pair’s fraud ran between November 2011 and October 2016, with the total sum of fraudulent evasion accepted as £682,882. Mr Jajdelski explained that by withholding VAT, “the companies were able to finance their commercial activities, including payments of staff wages, out of the sales income part of which ought to have been accounted for HMRC”.
He told the court: “Carbajosa and Campbell were also able to take more money out of the companies as their personal income than they otherwise would have been able to do.” Although some outlets sold sushi takeaway food that could be zero‑rated, “most of the supplies were subject to 20% tax” and all of the relevant companies had VAT turnovers “significantly” above the registration threshold.
The fraud came to light after HMRC spotted discrepancies in VAT returns from two of the businesses, triggering Operation Keyholder and a forensic accounting review of records from August 2012 to October 2016. The investigation found that three companies were not registered for VAT at all and that false sales data had been submitted “personally or through Khalid Javid and/or his staff” on VAT returns.
Jajdelski said: “Carbajosa and Campbell knew that the sales information provided in the VAT returns were false.” Both men pleaded guilty to fraudulent evasion of VAT and were each sentenced to three years in prison by Judge Lord Young at the High Court in Glasgow.
Accountant’s role under scrutiny
Their accountant, Khalid Javid of KA Javid & Co, admitted recklessly making false statements in VAT returns for two of the companies. Mr Jajdelski said: “In relation to two of the companies, Mr Javid recklessly made statements in the relevant VAT returns which were false,” including failing to give correct sales and output VAT and not seeking clarification on figures supplied.
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He told the court a blanket “20% reduction to all sales figures without a proper factual basis” had been applied, leading to an HMRC loss of £136,576 linked to Javid’s actions. Sentence on Javid has been deferred for background reports until next month, and he was granted bail in the meantime by Lord Young.
The court also heard that Javid is a well‑known Scottish independence supporter who has previously been photographed with former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon. He was linked to a Holyrood probe in 2010 after paying £2,000 at a Glasgow auction for lunch with Ms Sturgeon and, the year before, bidding £260 for a tour of the Scottish Parliament.
Although the SNP said neither event took place and no donations were received, complaints made against Ms Sturgeon and then First Minister Alex Salmond were dismissed. The political connections played no part in the fraud charges but underline Javid’s public profile as he awaits sentence.
