Former BHS owner Dominic Chappell has been convicted of failing to provide information that the Pensions Regulator had asked him to supply as part of its investigation into the sale and subsequent collapse of the retailer.
This included information about the purchase of BHS for £1 by Chappell’s Retail Acquisitions and the participants involved, as well as the transactions involving Retail Acquisitions and BHS after the sale had been completed.
Chappell also failed to provide the pensions watchdog with details about a possible unauthorised disclosure of restricted material.
He was convicted at Brighton Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, and was found guilty of three charges of neglecting to provide information and documents, without a reasonable excuse. Chappell had denied the charges.
District Judge William Ashworth adjourned the case until January 19, when Chappell will be sentenced at Winchester Crown Court.
The case is the fifth criminal conviction secured by the Brighton-based watchdog against individuals or organisations for failing to comply with section 72 notices.
Nicola Parish, the regulator’s executive director of frontline regulation, said: “We are satisfied with the outcome of this case, the latest in a series of successful prosecutions by TPR for offences of this kind.”
She added: “The power to demand specific information is a key investigative tool in our work to protect people’s pensions. This conviction shows that the courts recognise its importance and that anyone who fails to co-operate with our information notices risks getting a criminal record.”
The watchdog’s separate anti-avoidance action against Chappell in respect of the BHS pension schemes is continuing.
