Japanese Businessman Loses £17m In 'Ponzi' Fraud, Jury Told

Two businessmen, accused of masterminding a £250 million-plus international ‘Ponzi’ fraud, obtained £17m from their largest single investor just three months before their company directorship disqualifications, a court heard today (Monday).

Imperial Consolidated, based at former RAF Binbrook, Market Rasen, which boasted ten overseas offices and 350 employees, collapsed in June 2002, owing £150m.

Lincoln Julian Fraser, 38, (pic l.)of Orford Hall, Brookenby, Binbrook, Market Rasen, Lincolnshire and Jared Bentley Brook, 39, (pic r.) of Sefton Drive, Worseley, Manchester, attracted 3,000 clients from all over the world.

One of them, successful Japanese financier Yuichi Yoshida, managing director of Ueda Tanshi, a respected company that works with banks, told Blackfriars Crown Court he was assured of a safe 7.5% return on his 3 billion yen investment.

He signed off the money on April 4, 2001, but in July received an insolvency service press notice that both Fraser and Brook had been disqualified from being directors of U.K. companies.

In 2000 Mr. Yoshida had made two investments of at least £6m in Imperial Consolidated.

His confidence grew after making a quick profit on both occasions, receiving his investment back in full – plus interest – at healthy rates of 4.5% and 5%.

“It says the investment is 100% protected so I did believe that,” he told the jury. “This was absolutely necessary. It was company money, not personal money so we could not afford to lose it.”

Mr. Yoshida was sold the investments by Masao Imadzu – Imperial Consolidated’s Asia representative.

“If we had looked very thoroughly in the market we may have found something as good, but we trusted Mr. Imadzu.”

Imperial Consolidated’s brochure promised investments were protected by Lloyds of London, the court heard, and boasted of Fraser’s “entrepreneurial flair.”

“My understanding was this Imperial Consolidated fund had sufficient returns and no risk,” added Mr. Yoshida, who the prosecution say lost every penny of his £17m.

In Spring, 2001, he was invited to invest for a third time in an Alpha 2 fund and was flown on an Imperial Consolidated private jet from London to RAF Binbrook on March 19.

Following a meeting with Brook Mr. Yoshida agreed the investment. “Mr. Brook was very confident in himself and spoke very fluently.”

Both men have pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to defraud investors in investment schemes between January 1, 1998 and June 30, 2002 and fraudulent trading, knowing it was for a fraudulent purpose between May 1, 2000 and June 30, 2002.

The court was told £253.9 million was invested in Imperial Consolidated over four-and-a-half years and over £150 million has vanished, despite investors being convinced by the pair their savings were safe.

The jury was told neither Fraser nor Brook, who lived in Beacon Lodge, near Louth during the fraud, have any accountancy or formal financial qualifications.

They were banned from being company directors after a previous venture – Progressive Leisure – which ran the Midland Hotel, Morecambe, Lancashire, ceased trading, leaving a string of unhappy creditors.