Jail for pizza driver who stole the dough

A PIZZA delivery driver from Ellesmere Port, who faked his pay, tax and job expenses in an attempt to steal more than £60,000 in tax repayments, has been jailed.

Neil David Felsbergs, 27, was caught after an investigation by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) uncovered his outlandish claims on his Self Assessment tax returns. Investigators found he had submitted 12 versions of his tax returns to trigger the refunds.

Felsbergs pleaded guilty on September 29, and was sentenced to 16 months imprisonment at Chester Crown Court.

HMRC withheld more than £15,000 of his tax repayments and said it will now start proceedings to recover the remaining tax he stole.

Sandra Smith, assistant director for the Fraud Investigation Service, HMRC, said: “Felsbergs attempted to line his own pockets by making multiple online claims, which all proved bogus. HMRC takes tax fraud extremely seriously and anyone choosing to evade their taxes or make deliberate attacks on the public purse can face prosecution, a criminal record and jail.”