A Bucks glazing firm boss fraudulently applied for a Covid loan before spending thousands on gambling and crypto investments.

Bucks-based Haralombos Ioannou paid more than £30,000 to gambling companies and cyrpto-investment firms after securing two maximum-value Bounce Back Loans.

Southwark Crown Court heard how the 49-year-old, of Cow Lane, Edlesborough, managed to bag two cash injections of £50,000 just months into the pandemic, despite businesses only being allowed one.

He went on to use the first loan legitimately for his glass-fitting company, Opti-Bond (GB) Ltd, but spent the money from the second for personal purposes.

The director received the £100,000 within an eight-day period between late June and early July 2020 and went on to make 38 transactions totalling almost £20,000 to his personal account.

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In the same period, around £25,000 of payments were made to gambling companies from his account, with £8,000 of the second loan also being transferred to investment and crypto-investment firms.

Almost £6,000 of the loan was withdrawn from ATM machines, while another £16,000 was transferred to an account in the name of his now ex-wife. 

Opti-Bond (GB) Ltd entered liquidation in November 2021, just under two years after it was first set up in October 2019, but Ioannou failed to inform the liquidator of the company’s first Bounce Back Loan.

He appeared in court on October 7 where he was given a 22-month suspended sentence.

Ioannou, previously of South London, was also disqualified as a company director for five years and ordered to pay £40,000 in compensation as well as complete 150 hours of unpaid work.

The court was also told how he claimed his company's turnover in 2019 was £216,000 when he submitted an application for the first loan in May 2020.

But when applying for the second cash sum, he claimed the turnover was £236,000. 

David Snasdell, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said: "Haralambos Ioannou exploited the Bounce Back Loan Scheme by fraudulently applying for a second Bounce Back Loan when companies could apply for one loan of up to £50,000 for support during the Covid-19 pandemic. 

"He not only fraudulently applied for a second loan but then spent it on activities which had nothing to do with his company’s operations such as gambling, crypto-investments, cash withdrawals and payments to his then partner. 

"The Insolvency Service remains committed to taking robust action against those who abused the Bounce Back Loan Scheme.

"Government-backed schemes were a lifeline for businesses during the pandemic, and we will continue to pursue those who deliberately  exploited this support at the taxpayers’ expense."