A FRAUDSTER who scammed the Jersey Royal Company and other businesses with his baseless claims that he could grow tea in Scotland has been jailed for three-and-a-half years.
Thomas Robinson (55) made around £550,000 over five years by duping customers into believing the thousands of tea plants he was supplying were grown on a Perthshire farm when in reality they were actually sourced from a horticulturist in Italy and flogged on for a significantly higher price due to their “Scottish-grown” label.
Robinson was jailed for three-and-a-half years at Stirling Sheriff Court this week, after being found guilty of two counts of fraud following a trial last month.
The fraud against the Jersey Royal Company took place between 2014 and 2018, before its sale to supplier Albert Bartlett in 2024.
