Post by chelmsfordiron on May 21, 2010 22:24:09 GMT
Bishop's Stortford Football Club chairman must repay £760,000 parking cash
THE director of an illegal airport park-and-ride business at Bishop's Stortford Football Club yesterday (Wednesday, May 19) failed in an appeal against an order to pay back his ill-gotten gains.
Luigi Del BassoLuigi Del Basso, 42, chairman of the club, was found to have benefited to the tune of more than £1.8million from the lucrative scheme, which allowed people to park at the club in Dunmow Road, and travel onwards to Stansted Airport.
He was hit with a £760,000 confiscation order last year, after admitting five counts of failing to comply with an enforcement notice to cease trading on the site at St Albans Crown Court in June 2007. He was also fined a total of £15,000.
The offences arose out of a planning application made in June 1999, for 201 parking spaces on land directly adjoining the football club. The land was owned by a company, Timelast Ltd, owned by Del Basso, but rented to Bishop's Stortford Football Club.
Conditional planning permission was granted, but limited to match days.
Four weeks later, however, a further application was made for a park-and-ride facility – but this was refused in July 2000.
By August 2000, East Hertfordshire District Council had become aware that the site was being used for a park-and-ride, and wrote to the club advising them to stop.
Lord Justice Leveson, who gave his decision on Del Basso's appeal at the Criminal Appeal Court yesterday (Wednesday, May 21) said: “Although this warning was repeated in numerous letters and meetings held between the local authority and the football club, it was ignored and the parking business continued to operate.”
By January 2003, an enforcement notice had been served by the local authority. Timelast Ltd and the club appealed, but in October 2003, their appeal was dismissed.
During that period, Lord Justice Leveson said, the parking business had continued to expand “far from taking heed of the local authority's concerns”.
Del Basso, of Lilbourne Drive, Hertford, and his business partner, Bradley Goodwin, 46, of Raine Avenue, Haverhill, Suffolk, were warned again of the illegality of their trading – and criminal proceedings were started against Timelast, the club and Goodwin in September 2004.
All three were convicted of failing to comply with the enforcement notice in November 2005, and fined £20,000 each.
However, the convictions did not put a stop to the business – and in January 2006, the three, plus Del Basso and the parking company - trading as the Parking Association - admitted failing to comply with the enforcement notice.
Del Basso was later hit with the swingeing confiscation order, although Goodwin, who was also found to have benefited by more than £1.8million, had no “realisable assets” and his confiscation order was set at zero.
Goodwin was fined a nominal £5 on each of the two counts he faced. Goodwin also appealed against his confiscation order before the three judges.
The club, parking company and Timelast were also fined nominal sums.
Lord Justice Leveson, who sat with Mr Justice Treacy and Mr Justice Coulson, heard from Andrew Trollope QC, representing Del Basso, that the purpose of the park-and-ride scheme was to provide income for the club and it was not operated for “personal profit”.
In total, the club received £500,000 – a sum which represented 30 per cent of the business' income.
The judge who imposed the order had not taken Del Basso's or Goodwin's expenses in operating the business into account, argued the QC.
This prosecution had been “utterly devastating” for Del Basso, Mr Trollope added, particularly considering the fact he had paid his taxes, VAT and business rates throughout.
But Lord Justice Leveson said that, although the park and ride was run on “business-like lines” and conducted in an “open manner”, it was still an “illegal operation”.
“From the moment Mr Del Basso had exhausted his rights of appeal against the enforcement notice, it was his duty to obey the law: he chose deliberately not to do so.
“The local authority could have prosecuted immediately, but provided him with another five months to comply and yet, still he refused to do so.
“Even after Timeleast Ltd, the Football Club and Mr Goodwin were prosecuted to conviction, again, Mr Del Basso and Mr Goodwin refused to comply; it was only after the second prosecution that confiscation proceedings were commenced.
“The economic or environmental harm is only one part of the picture: the other is that a requirement to observe the law is imposed on all and Mr Del Basso and Mr Goodwin have only themselves to blame for their persistent failure to do so.”
The court dismissed the appeals.
Ouch, very ouch!
Link: www.hertsandessexobserver.co.uk/Bishops-Stortford/Football-club-chairman-must-repay-760000-parking-cash.htm
THE director of an illegal airport park-and-ride business at Bishop's Stortford Football Club yesterday (Wednesday, May 19) failed in an appeal against an order to pay back his ill-gotten gains.
Luigi Del BassoLuigi Del Basso, 42, chairman of the club, was found to have benefited to the tune of more than £1.8million from the lucrative scheme, which allowed people to park at the club in Dunmow Road, and travel onwards to Stansted Airport.
He was hit with a £760,000 confiscation order last year, after admitting five counts of failing to comply with an enforcement notice to cease trading on the site at St Albans Crown Court in June 2007. He was also fined a total of £15,000.
The offences arose out of a planning application made in June 1999, for 201 parking spaces on land directly adjoining the football club. The land was owned by a company, Timelast Ltd, owned by Del Basso, but rented to Bishop's Stortford Football Club.
Conditional planning permission was granted, but limited to match days.
Four weeks later, however, a further application was made for a park-and-ride facility – but this was refused in July 2000.
By August 2000, East Hertfordshire District Council had become aware that the site was being used for a park-and-ride, and wrote to the club advising them to stop.
Lord Justice Leveson, who gave his decision on Del Basso's appeal at the Criminal Appeal Court yesterday (Wednesday, May 21) said: “Although this warning was repeated in numerous letters and meetings held between the local authority and the football club, it was ignored and the parking business continued to operate.”
By January 2003, an enforcement notice had been served by the local authority. Timelast Ltd and the club appealed, but in October 2003, their appeal was dismissed.
During that period, Lord Justice Leveson said, the parking business had continued to expand “far from taking heed of the local authority's concerns”.
Del Basso, of Lilbourne Drive, Hertford, and his business partner, Bradley Goodwin, 46, of Raine Avenue, Haverhill, Suffolk, were warned again of the illegality of their trading – and criminal proceedings were started against Timelast, the club and Goodwin in September 2004.
All three were convicted of failing to comply with the enforcement notice in November 2005, and fined £20,000 each.
However, the convictions did not put a stop to the business – and in January 2006, the three, plus Del Basso and the parking company - trading as the Parking Association - admitted failing to comply with the enforcement notice.
Del Basso was later hit with the swingeing confiscation order, although Goodwin, who was also found to have benefited by more than £1.8million, had no “realisable assets” and his confiscation order was set at zero.
Goodwin was fined a nominal £5 on each of the two counts he faced. Goodwin also appealed against his confiscation order before the three judges.
The club, parking company and Timelast were also fined nominal sums.
Lord Justice Leveson, who sat with Mr Justice Treacy and Mr Justice Coulson, heard from Andrew Trollope QC, representing Del Basso, that the purpose of the park-and-ride scheme was to provide income for the club and it was not operated for “personal profit”.
In total, the club received £500,000 – a sum which represented 30 per cent of the business' income.
The judge who imposed the order had not taken Del Basso's or Goodwin's expenses in operating the business into account, argued the QC.
This prosecution had been “utterly devastating” for Del Basso, Mr Trollope added, particularly considering the fact he had paid his taxes, VAT and business rates throughout.
But Lord Justice Leveson said that, although the park and ride was run on “business-like lines” and conducted in an “open manner”, it was still an “illegal operation”.
“From the moment Mr Del Basso had exhausted his rights of appeal against the enforcement notice, it was his duty to obey the law: he chose deliberately not to do so.
“The local authority could have prosecuted immediately, but provided him with another five months to comply and yet, still he refused to do so.
“Even after Timeleast Ltd, the Football Club and Mr Goodwin were prosecuted to conviction, again, Mr Del Basso and Mr Goodwin refused to comply; it was only after the second prosecution that confiscation proceedings were commenced.
“The economic or environmental harm is only one part of the picture: the other is that a requirement to observe the law is imposed on all and Mr Del Basso and Mr Goodwin have only themselves to blame for their persistent failure to do so.”
The court dismissed the appeals.
Ouch, very ouch!
Link: www.hertsandessexobserver.co.uk/Bishops-Stortford/Football-club-chairman-must-repay-760000-parking-cash.htm
