Fugitive fraudster held in South Africa
A FUGITIVE Manchester businessman has been arrested in South Africa after being on the run since 2008.
Raymond Nevitt, 51, was convicted and sentenced in 2008 to three years, nine months’ in jail for five counts of fraudulent trading in relation to the Ravelle Group of companies, which sold second hand computer parts to the PC maintenance industry.
He had absconded in October 2006 following a conviction in a linked Serious Fraud Office case. The SFO is now beginning extradition proceedings.
Nevitt was arrested on Wednesday in Cape Town by the South African Police Service, He is thought to have been there for five years. At the time of the arrest he was found with 28 mobile phones and a large quantity of SIM cards in his possession.
Nevitt is expected to be extradited to the UK to serve his sentence. In October 2008 he was ordered to pay a £1.6 million confiscation order by May 2009 or face a further 10 years’ imprisonment in default.
Alun Milford, General Counsel at the SFO said: “This arrest follows years of close work between the Serious Fraud Office, National Crime Agency, Greater Manchester Police and the South African authorities.”
The £3.5m fraud centred on the creation of false documents designed to deceive creditors such as IBM and Barclays into providing further finance to the Ravelle Group.
Nevitt, who was the driving force behind all three companies within the Ravelle Group (Ravelle Limited, PC2GO Limited and Ravelle Printers Limited, trading as “Just Printers Limited”) based in Trafford Park, Manchester, was one of four company directors sentenced for the crime in 2008.
THE SFO said Nevitt frequestly used company credit cards for personal expenses and travel. He led an extravagant lifestyle, making numerous foreign trips to destinations such as Las Vegas, Monaco, Verbier and Singapore.
Additionally, he financed a number of company cars for himself including a Ferrari and three BMWs. He crashed and wrote off the Ferrari after he drove it in the Gumball Rally.
He fled theses shores in 2006 after he was issued a passport in someone else’s name. He is believed to have first fled to Spain. In April 2008 Nevitt entered Thailand at Bangkok Airport, using the fraudulently obtained genuine passport. He secured a visa under the assumed identity and lived in Bo Phut, Koh Samui offering his services as a driver.
He subsequently left Thailand, possibly early in 2010 and made his way to South Africa.
