Suspended Sentence for Watford Director Following £50,000 COVID Loan Abuse
Watford FC director Laurence Bassini has been given a suspended prison sentence after admitting to abusing a £50,000 COVID-19 loan meant for struggling businesses.
On Tuesday, November 29, 2024, Bassini, 52, pleaded guilty to one count of fraudulent trading at Southwark Crown Court. The court heard that he used the Bounce Back Loan, meant to provide emergency financial assistance to businesses during the pandemic, to pay off a personal debt to a company he had founded.
Judge Alexander Milne sentenced Bassini to 15 months in prison, suspended for two years. He was also ordered to pay £57,000 in compensation to the Bounce Back Loan Scheme.
Prosecutor Paul Jarvis told the court that Bassini applied for the loan in June 2020, claiming that it would be used to pay wages and other essential expenses for Watford FC. However, he actually used the money to repay a £50,000 debt to his own company, WBS Training Limited.
The court heard that Bassini was the sole director of WBS Training Limited and had used the company as a “vehicle” for his personal finances. He had previously been involved in several failed business ventures and had been declared bankrupt in 2011.
Judge Milne said that Bassini was “motivated by financial greed” and had “taken advantage of a government scheme designed to help businesses in financial difficulty.” He added that Bassini’s actions had “undermined the integrity of the Bounce Back Loan Scheme.”
In mitigation, Bassini’s lawyer, Matthew Scott, said that his client was “deeply remorseful” for his actions. He said that Bassini had been struggling with financial difficulties at the time and had made a “momentary error of judgement.”
Scott also said that Bassini had since repaid the Bounce Back Loan in full and had made efforts to address his financial problems.
However, Judge Milne said that Bassini’s actions were “a serious breach of trust” and that he had to be punished. He said that the suspended sentence was intended to give Bassini a chance to “prove that he has turned a corner.”
Bassini is now banned from being a company director for six years.
The Bounce Back Loan Scheme was launched by the UK government in May 2020 to provide loans of up to £50,000 to small businesses struggling due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The loans were interest-free for the first 12 months and were meant to be used to pay wages, rent, and other essential expenses.
The scheme was closed in May 2021, after approving over £47 billion in loans to more than 1.5 million businesses.
Suspended sentence for Watford director following £50,000 covid loan abuse
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