A man has gone on trial accused of committing a £12.9 million fraud by pretending to investors he would place their cash in non-existent “high interest” bank accounts.
Alistair Greig, 66, is being prosecuted on charges alleging he broke the law between August 2001 and October 2014.
Prosecutors claim Mr Greig carried out a fraudulent scheme and breached financial services and proceeds of crime laws at various addresses in Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Lincolnshire.
Greig, of Boston, Lincolnshire – formerly of Cairnbulg, near Fraserburgh – denies the allegations.
His legal team have lodged a special defence stating other people were responsible for the alleged criminality.
They entered not guilty pleas on their client’s behalf during the first day of proceedings against him at the High Court in Edinburgh.
Jurors also heard the contents of a legal document detailing the charges facing Greig.
Prosecutors claim Greig carried out the allegedly fraudulent scheme by his “own hand” and “by the hands” of independent financial advisers that he “directed”.
The Crown alleges these financial advisers were employed by or affiliated to a company called Park Row Associates plc and to another firm called Midas Financial Solutions (Scotland) Limited.
It’s claimed that Greig pretended to investors he would invest their cash in high-interest accounts with the Royal Bank of Scotland for fixed periods of time, that the return of capital and interest was guaranteed and that the scheme was authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority and by its predecessor, the Financial Services Authority. The charge states that the truth of the situation was Greig knew there were no high- interest accounts with the Royal Bank of Scotland and that the return to investors wasn’t guaranteed.
The Crown also claims the sums of money returned to investors were sums of money that had been deposited by other investors in the scheme and that by “such false pretences” he obtained £12,982,789.23 by fraud.
A second charge states he accepted £13,082,263.51 of deposits into bank accounts held in the names of companies called Park Row Associates and Midas Financial Aberdeen in breach of financial services and proceeds of crime laws.
It’s claimed he did “convert and transfer criminal property within the United Kingdom” and that he removed this “criminal property” from Britain.
The trial continues.
