Swindler used his ill-gotten gains to fund a lavish lifestyle

A PORSCHE-loving former bank worker who stole �3.2million in an audacious tax scam has been jailed for three years and three months.

Nikola Novakovic, of Gascony Avenue, Kilburn, teamed up with two accomplices to created more than 1,050 fake identities which they used to claim back rebates using the Income Tax Self Assessment system.

Woolwich Crown Court heard once the money was paid into the 200 false bank accounts they created, the trio either withdrew the money using ATM machines or transferred the cash through a web of linked accounts they had set up.

The 34-year-old ex-business manager at a bank used the funds to bankroll a lavish lifestyle which included him splashing out on a Porsche Cayenne and a Porsche Boxster.

Oleg Rozputnii, 28, of no fixed address, used numerous false identities to help commit the fraud and hide his involvement.

The Ukrainian illegal immigrant also bought a Porsche Cayenne to go with a Mercedes E-Class and a Jaguar S-Type - all funded by his swindle.

Rozputnii and compatriot Dmytro Shepel, 26, from south east London, transferred some of their ill-gotten gains back to their homeland.

Rozputnni was sentenced to three years and nine months alongside Novakovic last week.

Shepel was jailed for three-and-a-half year at his trial in August last year.

He will be deported on his release.

Joe Rawbone, from HM Revenue & Customs’ criminal investigation unit, said: “Together these three men ran a calculated and organised scam to callously steal millions of pounds.

“They set up hundreds of fraudulent bank accounts and in some cases used viruses to hack into personal computers obtaining information to perpetrate their crimes. “They were motivated solely by greed, using their criminal profits to fund lavish lifestyles at the expense of the taxpaying public.

“HMRC takes tax fraud extremely seriously and our next step will be to recover any financial gain from this criminal activity. We have processes in place to detect and counter fraud, which are kept under constant review to ensure we are able to deal with them effectively.”

All three, who were convicted of cheating the public revenue, face being stripped of their assets at a confiscation hearing to be held later this year.