The jury in the trial of Shropshire businessman David Oakley has been told that despite a 10-year ban preventing him being a company director, he allegedly ran holiday firms from offices in Shrewsbury.And it is claimed that Oakley was taking money for his own purpose from all three of the travel businesses – Caribbean Marketing UK Ltd, Voyager International Ltd and VIP Connections Ltd.

See also:
Boss ‘ran up £15,000 debt’
Travel firm boss ‘a conman’

Oakley, of Salters Lane, Shrewsbury, is being tried at Shrewsbury Crown Court. He denies running the three businesses while he was banned from being a company director.

He also denies fraudulent trading by running the businesses for the purpose of defrauding customers.

The 62-year-old also denies forging cheques, obtaining money by deception and attempting to pervert the course of justice.

David Matthew, prosecuting, told the court Oakley was selling timeshare and holiday club memberships, but many people who were promised flights and holidays did not get them.

He claimed that days before they were due to go on holiday customers were calling to ask for their tickets and some did not receive them.

Mr Matthew said that Oakley was getting money from one customer down the line to pay for the holiday of another person and was “bumping” along from booking to another.

It has been claimed Oakley “looted” the account of Voyager International and about £68,000 went through the account.

Mr Matthew said Voyager International had been set up in the name of Adrian Ramian, but he was a “sleeping partner”, and Oakley was responsible for its day-to-day running.

It was also alleged Oakley had been forging Mr Ramian’s signature on cheques.

The jury has been told the Voyager International bank account was frozen after police were called in following complaints from disgruntled customers.

But Mr Matthew said that Oakley immediately started VIP Connections Ltd in January 2002 and listed his teenage son, Edward, as a director, although the prosecution say that Oakley was running the business.

It is alleged that Oakley’s purpose for VIP Connections was to cheat customers and use money that people had paid him for holidays.

Mr Matthew has alleged that Oakley is a conman who was selling timeshare and holidays and tried to cheat his customers.

“When he is caught he will lie and try to wriggle out of it and keeps doing it in different ways,” he said.

Oakley is not in the dock for his trial. Recorder Denis Desmond told the jury of six men and six women they must not assume Oakley to be guilty because he was not at the court.

The trial continues.

By Arthur Mills 

See also:
Boss ‘ran up £15,000 debt’
Travel firm boss ‘a conman’