AN Alicante-based hotelier and money launderer who used a Jersey account to hide fraudulent cash has been ordered to be extradited to Jersey after refusing to travel to the Island for his sentencing.
In September, Martin John Hill (56) pleaded guilty in the Royal Court to six counts of money-laundering, appearing via videolink from his Costa Blanca home.
He was due to be sentenced on Thursday 21 November and was due to appear in person, but “positively” decided not to travel to Jersey, according to his advocate.
The hotelier had made inaccurate tax declarations between 2014 and 2016 for two Isle of Wight hotels, the Burlington Hotel and the Shanklin Beach Hotel.
He under-declared sales for the hotels and pocketed the VAT he charged guests – and used Jersey accounts to stash it away.
Southwark Crown Court sentenced him to 30 months’ imprisonment for three charges of VAT evasion in 2019.
In September, he admitted that he had transferred money from a UK account at Tesco Bank to an account at Santander International’s Jersey Branch.
He made three transfers in 2017, amounting to £165,500, £10,000 and £86,500. These made up three charges of converting or transferring criminal property.
He also admitted to possession or control of criminal property for £340,500 he held in a Jersey account – money he had made fraudulently.
Between 2017 and 2018, he converted £28,487 in a Jersey account to euros, which made another charge of converting or transferring criminal property.
Advocate Ian Jones, defending, told the Royal Court that he had not received instructions to appear or give any details on Hill’s behalf – for example, if there were any reasons that prevented him from travelling to Jersey.
He said Hill had “positively decided not to appear” and that he knew this meant breaking his bail conditions.
Crown Advocate Sam Brown, prosecuting, asked for Hill to be extradited and for a warrant to be issued for his arrest. The process of extraditing Hill had already begun, he said, and working with Spanish authorities had not presented a problem in the past.
Extraditing Hill could take between six and eight months, the court heard.
The Deputy Bailiff, Robert MacRae, said: “The defendant has voluntarily elected not to appear, without any good reason advanced… We revoke his bail and order his arrest.
“We understand that extradition proceedings have begun.”
The Deputy Bailiff was sitting alongside Jurats Austin-Vautier and Le Heuzé.
