Ogden hit for £24,000
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• Gloucestershire haulier Trevor Ogden has been ordered to pay .224,000.86p in fines, costs and back duty after pleading guilty to nearly 500 excise licence offences.
Ogden, of Battle Down Far, Oakridge near Stroud, admitted three offences of fraudulently using an excise licence, two offences of fraudulently altering excise licences — and 127 offences of using vehicles without excise licences.
He asked for a further 362 similar offences to be taken into account, when he appeared before the Thornbury magistrates. Edward Lyons, prosecuting for the Western Traffic Area, said the offences came to light when the excise licence of a vehide involved in an accident was found to have been altered.
Defending, Geoffrey Jones said the business had made a loss of around £30,000 in 1985, which was partly because of the after-effects of the coal strike. Ogden also had to pay out £27,000 after standing guarantor for a driver who became self-employed.
Several thousand pounds more were lost when three other drivers got into difficulties and three customers ceased trading.
Ogden struggled to keep the business going by not paying excise tax in order to keep his drivers in work.
He had since disposed of what assets he could, keeping one vehicle which he drove himself. There was a significant risk that his own licence would not be renewed as a result of these offences.
He was fined 22,640 and ordered to pay 220,356.61p back duty and £904.25 presecution costs.