PensionsJul 7 2017

Pension adviser employee convicted over scam probe

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Pension adviser employee convicted over scam probe

An employee of a pension advice firm at the centre of a multi-million pound scam inquiry has been convicted of refusing to provide information to the investigation.

Karen Turgut was office manager at Friendly Pensions, which is under investigation by The Pensions Regulator (TPR) in connection with a suspected £13.75m scam.

Ms Turgut, of Bromley, Kent, refused to give information to the regulator and failed to supply documents, despite being required to by law.

She was ordered to pay £4,720 at Brighton Magistrates’ Court after being convicted of refusing to provide information and documents required under section 72 of the Pensions Act 2004 without a reasonable excuse.

The case is the third criminal conviction secured by The Pensions Regulator.

The regulator's staff wanted Ms Turgut to answer questions and hand over documents about the activities of Friendly Pensions, specifically about emails she had sent and received while working there.

She was asked to assist the investigation voluntarily, but when she failed to respond she was served with a notice requiring her to provide information to the regulator. 

The notice – known as a section 72 notice - warned that failing to comply with it would be a criminal offence.

Ms Turgut still refused to co-operate, without giving a good reason.

She did not turn up at Brighton Magistrates’ Court for the hearing on Wednesday (5 July). 

The court tried her in her absence and she was convicted.

The magistrates said Ms Turgut had been given plenty of opportunities to speak to The Pensions Regulator's staff but had simply chosen to ignore them.

The regulator can bring further criminal proceedings, with the threat of further fines, until she complies.

Mike Birch, The Pensions Regulator’s director of case management, said: “We will not hesitate to prosecute those who prevent us gathering the data we require for our investigations.

“Karen Turgut’s refusal to co-operate with our team was flagrant, without any excuse, and wasted our time and resources.

“Information notices are a key enforcement tool for The Pensions Regulator to help us tackle those abusing the system. Refusing to comply with a legal request from The Pensions Regulator will not be tolerated.”

laura.miller@ft.com