On the go: Three people appeared in court on Tuesday following an investigation by the Pensions Regulator into a multimillion-pound pension fraud.
TPR alleges that between 2012 and 2014, some 245 savers were persuaded to transfer their pension savings, totalling £13.7m, into 11 schemes controlled by the defendants — Alan Barratt, Julian Hanson and Susan Dalton.
Appearing in Westminster Magistrates Court and charged with abuse of position as part of a criminal prosecution brought by TPR, Dalton, 65, plead guilty, while Hanson, 56, gave no indication of a plea. Barratt, 61, pleaded not guilty.
As previously reported in Pensions Expert, Barratt had to be extradited from Spain under the European Arrest Warrant. The regulator said it was the first time it had worked with the police to extradite a pension fraud suspect.
Under the new powers afforded it by the Pension Schemes Act, the regulator is no longer bound by limitation periods when it comes to prosecuting criminal offences and is able to pursue anyone connected to an offence.
TPR has severally warnedthat its new powers will strengthen the punishment for reckless and criminal behaviour, and it intends them to be seen as a deterrent.
The case comes as the number of claims on the Fraud Compensation Fund continues to rise, reaching a total value of around £40m, as reported in April.
The rising number of claims prompted the Pension Protection Fund to increase the fraud compensation levy to 75p per member (30p for master trusts), which is the maximum permitted by law.
All three suspects have been released on bail and ordered to appear before Southwark Crown Court on May 11.
