Gmund Cars Ltd & Andrew Mearns FRAUD £1Million stolen

[pzero]

Be interesting to see how he pleads ....... :bandit:

Gotta be jail time given his position of trust, money involved, pre meditated over a significant period of time.......pleading not guilty may not be an option for him :?:

I can't see how his people (decence lawyers) are not already working on this. Early pleas and mitigation is all he has going for him. The lightest prison sentence will be their stategy.

 

[pzero]

Also this may not be the end of the matter ie guilty hopefully leads to Proceeds of crime recovery :dont know:

POCA will be working against him with this. 18 months in an open prison will be the least of his worries, hopefully.

 

[FZP]

Upgrading from the Mags to CC, also increased his possible punishment. He'll be reaching for Thumper 3000 in preparation.😬

 

[easternjets]

Has there been any news on the lovely Mr Hawkins and SCOM?

Another one who should be heading for justice

 

[911UK]

i understand he was also into the film funding tax issues as well

 

[diceman]

It does make you wonder if there is a connection between all these Yorkshire Porsche sellers.

The article below may be an indication of the likely outcome.

https://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/9718448.pub-manager-keeps-job-despite-jail-term/

Somehow this chap managed to keep enough £ to start up Fantinos in Thirsk (which I believe has now folded or closed?)

Unbeknown to me at the time; I booked to stay at Fantinos shortly after buying my 911 to get chatting to the bar man who was talking about his boss the Porsche guy. Seems there's more than one way to milk a bent money tree.

 

[Desertduck565]

Update

Update

https://thestrayferret.co.uk/knaresborough-luxury-car-dealer-denies-fraud-and-theft-charges/

 

[jonttt]

Mmmm I quite enjoy a day in court ......Given this won't be a closed court I may make an appearance out of interest :bandit:

 

[FZP]

I'll go for the sentencing hearing for sure.

 

[911UK]

Re: Update

Update

https://thestrayferret.co.uk/knaresborough-luxury-car-dealer-denies-fraud-and-theft-charges/

Knaresborough luxury car dealer denies fraud and theft charges

million.

Andrew Mearns, 54, who owned Gmund Cars in Knaresborough, appeared at York Crown Court today when he pleaded not guilty to 13 counts of fraud and three theft allegations.

All the allegations relate to his car dealership at the Nidd Valley Trading Estate and involve 16 alleged victims.

The alleged offences are said to have occurred between September 2015 and December 2020.

One of the allegations is that Mr Mearns stole a £130,000 Porsche from a named man in January 2019.

Mr Mearns, now living in Conwy, Wales, is also alleged to have stolen a £60,000 Porsche Turbo from another named man in October 2018 and a £65,000 Porsche 911 Carrera in November of that year.

Judge Simon Hickey adjourned the case for a trial on a date to be fixed. The trial is due to last between two and three weeks and may be held in a different court.

Mr Mearns, of Colwyn Place, Llandudno, was granted bail until his next appearance.

 

[benoniboksburg]

All men are deemed to be innocent in court until proven guilty, Chortle ! Chortle
It would be weird if someone on the jury owned a Porsche !

 

[barty964rst]

Nothing to do with Court case! I have known and dealt on occasionwith Andrew over the past 20 years or so. With Gmund and his previous entity (can't remember the name now)!
My experience of him and his business had always been positive as no doubt many others experienced similar, I liked Andrew, in the dealings I had on buying 3 x RS air cooled cars over a 10 year period. I knew numerous persons who at the time also had a positive view of the set up in buying his RS cars.

I also remember paying for one on a cheque book in 2006 and I left with the car, which at the time surprised me. Not good practice in todays business landscape, but reflective of the time and trust we once had in doing these type of transactions. Andrew said "Don't worry everybody knows one another in the Porsche World, if I need to get you, I will". There was no issue I hasten to add.

I also have met the guy with the Boxster / Stickers who arranged the plane and sign on the open day, who got seriously shafted on a very desirable 924 GT model by Andrew. I have read the subsequent posts on this forum with dismay.
Makes me wonder where and why this all went wrong, it seemed Andrew had a great business, positive reputation promoted and sponsored by PCGB, this was built over a long time.

Everybody involved has been so negatively affected by this deceit, it is very sad to read. I genuinely hope the innocent parties are able to obtain closure from the legal process.
Just adding this update as like others I could have easily been in the situation of being taken advantage of, given the trust I had with Gmund over the years. Proceed with caution going forward, especially with the tightening market.

 

[jonttt]

I have no personal investment or experience in this tale and merely a passing interest in corporate fraud, I started off way back when in corporate fraud / audit which I found fascinating and a great grounding into business and particularly what motivates individuals ...... I have no doubt that in this case this was a legitimate and thriving business and there was never an intent to defraud, however any business which has weak process and is dependant on trust is then overly reliant on moral controls which can break over a period of time, again without any initial intention to do so.....in simple terms the moral compass goes off track. The classic case as is probably the case here is that for whatever reason funds where used for one transaction to satisfy another debt. The formal term is 'Teeming and lading" (a bookkeeping fraud also known as short banking, delayed accounting, and lapping. It involves the allocation of one customer's payment to another customer's account to make the books balance, often to hide a shortfall or theft.) I have seen this from a few hundred pounds of petty cash used initially as an IOU for £10 on a Friday night to buy a drink with the intention of paying the money back the following week to before you know it they owe £500 and can't pay it back to >£1m within a purchasing department when the funds where used to pay for lifestyle not in keeping with a purchasing director. That started off as not being able to pay for one holiday and 'lending the money" and then simple greed takes over.
This probably started with 'best intentions" and 'I'm not doing anything wrong" with a real intention of paying the funds back, then the vicious circle begins until you simply can't.
From what I know I doubt he will get away with this and the fact he played on trust / was given and accepted a position of trust / held himself out in such a way will go against him greatly. The monies involved will mean a more serious offence / sentence and in pleading not guilty to all charges it smacks of a man simply trying to delay the inevitable custodial sentence. I would love to be a fly on the wall with his legal team who are likely advising him on the risk he is taking in maintaining innocence.
I would find this an interesting case to be present at the trial.

 

[easternjets]

I'm not a qualified accountant but I was in business for 25 yrs and met some very colourful characters, some of whom have been out of the nick for a good few years now!

I've also met quite a few people who never see anything that they do as untoward, they defraud the Inland Revenue and they see themselves as 'Robin Hood' types.
They borrow money from friends or family and when they can't pay it back come out with the trite line 'well you can afford a XXXXX car or house' so you'll get it back when I can afford it'
Nearly all of these types have a completely skewed moral compass, or in the case of Andrew Mearns no moral compass at all, add to this his wife who apparently has bailed him out in the past and who apparently is legally qualified. So not only does he have no morals, she helps him and therefore reinforces his belief that he's 'doing nothing wrong'.
Add to this PCGB's apparent 'backing' of not only Mr Mearns but also Mr Hawkins of SCOM fame.
They see business as a game and one which they feel they have to win at all costs.
Mearns and Hawkins were borderline professional con men, they stole money to fund a business and a lifestyle, if you met them in the street they would have a very plausible story as to why it wasn't their fault.
Hopefully they will spend many years in 'the big house' telling all the other lags about how they were misunderstood.

 

[Desertduck565]

Did you only buy cars from Gmund ? The problem appears to be with people getting paid for their cars after being sold through Gmund.

Thanks

Nothing to do with Court case! I have known and dealt on occasionwith Andrew over the past 20 years or so. With Gmund and his previous entity (can't remember the name now)!
My experience of him and his business had always been positive as no doubt many others experienced similar, I liked Andrew, in the dealings I had on buying 3 x RS air cooled cars over a 10 year period. I knew numerous persons who at the time also had a positive view of the set up in buying his RS cars.

I also remember paying for one on a cheque book in 2006 and I left with the car, which at the time surprised me. Not good practice in todays business landscape, but reflective of the time and trust we once had in doing these type of transactions. Andrew said "Don't worry everybody knows one another in the Porsche World, if I need to get you, I will". There was no issue I hasten to add.

I also have met the guy with the Boxster / Stickers who arranged the plane and sign on the open day, who got seriously shafted on a very desirable 924 GT model by Andrew. I have read the subsequent posts on this forum with dismay.
Makes me wonder where and why this all went wrong, it seemed Andrew had a great business, positive reputation promoted and sponsored by PCGB, this was built over a long time.

Everybody involved has been so negatively affected by this deceit, it is very sad to read. I genuinely hope the innocent parties are able to obtain closure from the legal process.
Just adding this update as like others I could have easily been in the situation of being taken advantage of, given the trust I had with Gmund over the years. Proceed with caution going forward, especially with the tightening market.