Court: Jeffrey Bevan Sentenced To Seven Years
A Welsh Court has sentenced Jeffrey Bevan to 7 years and 4 months in prison after he was convicted of laundering £1.3 million [$1.8], and local officials confirm that confiscation proceedings have started in order to recover the funds stolen from the Bermuda Government.
Mr Bevan, an accountant from Wales, was employed as Payments Manager for the Bermuda Government from 2011 to 2013, and during that time some $2.4 million was stolen.
The $2.4 million was laundered through various bank accounts, and the court heard that the 50-year-old had a serious gambling habit and lived a lavish lifestyle with travel, buying real estate, shares in racehorses and two Mercedes cars
A Bermuda police spokesperson said, “Following a four year joint international police investigation between the Organised and Economic Crime Department of the Bermuda Police Service and TARIAN Regional Organised Crime Unit, Jeffrey Bevan, 50, from Cwmbran, Wales has been convicted of laundering £1.3 million.
“In total, $2.4 million Bermuda Dollars were laundered through various bank accounts held in Bermuda and the United Kingdom.
“Operation Bolivar was managed by TARIAN the Welsh Regional Organised Crime Unit. Bevan pleaded guilty to all 13 counts on the first day of his trial at Cardiff Crown Court.
“His Honour Judge Fitton QC jailed Bevan today [Friday, February 16th] for a total of seven years and four months.
“Confiscation proceedings under the Proceeds of Crime Act have started in order to recover the funds stolen from the Bermuda Government.
“Following a week-long trial, two co-defendants, Joel Ismail and Paul Charity, both from Leicester, who had also faced joint charges with Bevan of conspiring to launder money stolen from the Bermuda Government, were unanimously acquitted last week of all charges relating to money laundering.
“However, Charity was found guilty of perverting the course of justice by deleting a series of emails with the intention of concealing them from the police during the investigation.
“Confiscation proceedings under the Proceeds of Crime Act have started in order to recover the funds stolen from the Bermuda Government.
“The court heard that Bevan, a qualified accountant, was employed as Payments Manager for the Bermuda Government between 2011 and 2013 on an annual salary of $112,000 [approximately £80,000].
“During that time he used his expertise to manipulate a new payments software system in order to steal a total of $2.4 million BMD [approximately £1.8 million] in 52 separate thefts over two years. This was money stolen from the Bermudian taxpayer.
“During this time Bevan laundered £1.3 million into the UK, buying a penthouse apartment in Swansea Marina, and several buy-to-let properties in Swansea, Newport, Nottingham and Glasgow. He also obtained shares in racehorses; purchased two Mercedes cars and also paid off his £140,000 mortgage on his family home in Cwmbran.
“The court heard that whilst in Bermuda, Bevan enjoyed a lavish lifestyle with regular family holidays to the Caribbean, United States and Europe as well as attending the races at Royal Ascot as VIPs.
“The court also heard that Bevan had a serious gambling habit and between November 2009 and May 2014 he placed 18,853 separate online bets, depositing a total of £2,031,474 and winning just £1,539,400, leaving him £492,074 in debt.”
Detective Superintendent Huw Davies of the Regional Organised Crime Unit said: “This investigation is a clear example of criminality having no geographical boundaries. However, it also demonstrates that law enforcement also has no boundaries in pursuing criminality.
“The excellent co-operation between British and Bermudian law enforcement was crucial in obtaining this conviction. We are now committed to recovering significant assets for the people of Bermuda.”
Detective Superintendent Sean Field-Lament, Head of the Crime Division of the Bermuda Police Service said: “ I echo the words of our partner, Detective Superintendent Huw Davies and would add that increasingly crime has no borders and Law enforcement has to come together to tackle the challenges that transnational Crime represents”.
“The length and breadth of this investigation, the highly professional partnership approach and indeed the successful conclusion is a firm statement of intent by the Bermuda Police Service and our international law enforcement partners not only to bring offenders to justice but also to recover the proceeds of crime and return to society the assets that have been unlawfully taken.”
“I would also like to express our gratitude to the Financial Secretary, the Accountant General and to the staff of the Accountant Generals Department, both past and present for their continued support and assistance throughout this protracted investigation. To have placed a lot of faith and trust in an individual and have it repaid in this manner always has long lasting effects on all those involved.”
“Finally I would say well done to all those involved whether as a witness or part of the investigation and prosecution teams, there is no doubt that as a result Bermuda is safer for the combined efforts demonstrated in this investigation”.
