Avril Jane Elliott, 49, from Gilberstoun, Edinburgh, was found to have received £275,000 she wasn’t entitled to. 

Elliott pleaded guilty to submitting a series of fraudulent VAT returns between 2008 and 2013, which were found to have “wildly” overstated her business expenses. 

Elliott used the money to fund a comfortable lifestyle and to pay off company loans.

HMRC uncovered this activity while inspecting her company’s finances and now steps are underway to recover the ill-gotten gains.

“Elliott’s actions cheated the exchequer out of significant sums of money, which funded a lifestyle well beyond her legitimate income,” said Cheryl Burr, assistant director of HMRC’s Fraud Investigation Service. 

“She thought she’d found a way to exploit the tax system, putting her own greed above funding vital public services.

“Most people pay the tax they owe, when they owe it, but a small minority think they are above the law. 

“No matter how well resourced someone is, nobody is beyond our reach.”

Elliott was sentenced at Edinburgh Sheriff Court where she was sentenced to two years imprisonment.