A former bodyguard has been warned a jail sentence is almost “inevitable” after he was found guilty of VAT fraud worth more than £419,000.
Kevin McKay, 46, was convicted of the fraudulent evasion of £419,799.34 of VAT by failing to submit returns and submitting false details of outputs for security firm IPPS Ltd.
The offence took place between August 1, 2008, and May 31, 2014.
He was also convicted of money laundering by transferring £100,473.98, obtained by fraudulent evasion of VAT, into a Romanian bank account in September, 2010.
He had denied the charges against him, lodging a special defence of incrimination against his former wife Susan.
But a jury took just over an hour to find McKay guilty of both charges.
During the trial, McKay gave evidence on his own behalf and told the court he had looked after some “big names” as a bodyguard, involving Britney Spears and Donald Trump.
McKay also said that various VAT forms, shown to the court, which appeared to bear his signature, had not been signed by him.
The court previously heard in a joint minute of agreed evidence that McKay’s ex-wife Susan was the sole director of the firm from June 26, 2008 until November 24, 2009. After that, Kevin McKay was the director until the firm’s dissolution last year.
The court heard incorrect VAT figures were submitted for some quarters, while there were quarters when nil values were entered and some where no returns were submitted at all.
Defence agent, John McLeod, asked for his client to remain on bail while social work reports were carried out.
But sheriff, Alison Stirling, told McKay she would remand him in custody pending sentence and added: “You have been convicted of two serious offences.”
McKay, whose address was given in court papers as Stewart Terrace, Aberdeen, will be sentenced next month.
