Hopwood Hall College duped in £5million youth training scheme fraud

Hopwood Hall College

Hopwood Hall College was one of nine colleges throughout the country duped by a £5m youth training scheme fraud with former Wales international footballer Mark Aizlewood at its helm.

Luis Michael Training (LMT) was set up as a vehicle for the fraud to gain money from the Skills Funding Agency (SFA).

It targeted government cash earmarked to help youngsters not in employment, education or training improve their lives.

Between October 2009 and December 2010, four directors of the company and two others pocketed over two and a quarter million pounds!

After a whistleblower alerted Gwent Police in November 2011, the SFO spent more than four years collecting 5.2 million pieces of evidence and interviewing 600 people.

The prosecution presented 237,000 pages to the jury and called 61 witnesses to give live evidence.

Following a four-month trial at Southwark Crown Court, four men were found guilty. Two others admitted charges before it started.

Directors Paul Sugrue, 56, from Cardiff, and Keith Williams, 45, from Anglesey, were both found guilty of two counts of conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation.

Mark Aizlewood, 57, of Aberdare, Rhondda, Cynon Taff, was found guilty of one count and fellow director, Christopher Martin, 53, of Catmore, West Berkshire, admitted both counts before the trial started.

There were two other men involved. Jack Harper, 30, of Merseyside, was found guilty of fraud and using a false instrument.

Stephen Gooding, 53, from Bridgwater, Somerset, admitted conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation before the trial.

The men will be sentenced later in February.

A Serious Fraud Office (SFO) spokesman said: "Many of those enrolled were living the dream - thinking they would be coaches for clubs like Manchester City and gain an NVQ in activity leadership, but it was a farce."

A Hopwood Hall College spokesperson said: "In 2010, Hopwood Hall College entered a relationship with LMT for national apprenticeship delivery in the area of sport (100 learners).

"In June 2010 concerns were raised internally about the integrity of LMT’s delivery, the college acted on these concerns and the contract was suspended in October 2010.

"Upon extensive investigation, it was found that the learners details supplied by LMT were either fictitious or were such that the learners did not qualify for funding from the Skills Funding Agency.

"We shared our concerns with the SFA and with other colleges who we knew worked directly with LMT.

"Our relationship with LMT was formally terminated in January 2011 and the college repaid all funds previously claimed back to the SFA.

"In the intervening years, Hopwood Hall College has actively worked with the LSC’s successor bodies; The Skills Funding Agency (SFA) and the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA), together with the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) to assist in the investigation of LMT."