A total of 15 fraudulent construction and civil engineering companies have been placed into liquidation following an investigation by the Insolvency Service.

It is understood the 'phantom' firms, with combined sales of over £50 million and assets of £8.4 million, were operated to obtain credit by filing false accounts and other false information.

The High Court heard how the 'ready made' companies were bought from two company formation agents by a person calling themselves Jonathan Hunting.

Fictitious directors were then appointed after the dormant firms were bought and activated.

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The dates of their appointments were put back by several years to the date of incorporation of the relevant company in order to legitimise false accounts filed by the new owner which reported 'significant' assets and trading.

It is understood the companies had no physical presence at their registered offices, each of which was located in different parts of the country while being independently owned and operated.

Chris Mayhew, Company Investigations Supervisor, welcomed the Court's decision.

"These supposedly unrelated companies had no legitimate purpose and existed solely to seek to obtain easily disposable goods on credit including expensive motor vehicles on lease finance with no intention of paying for them," he said.

"False accounts were filed by some of the companies to create the impression that they were substantial and credit worthy businesses and had been trading profitably for a number of years which the investigation found to be blatantly untrue.

"Where no trading accounts had been filed the first step, backdating the date of the director’s appointment, had been taken to continue with the fraud."

(LM/CD)