A former construction company director who was sentenced to prison for submitting false VAT claims has been ordered to repay more than £188,000.

Avril Elliott, aged 50, was sentenced to prison for two years after admitting a charge of fraud.

Her company, Scothouses Ltd, got into financial difficulty when three properties in East Kilbride failed to sell and loans which had been taken out by the business could not be repaid..

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Ms Elliott had submitted false VAT claims to HMRC worth £275,000 and then used the money to pay interest on the loans.

On Tuesday, a confiscation order for £188,256 was made at Edinburgh Sheriff Court.

Procurator Fiscal for Specialist Casework, Liam Murphy, said: "Avril Elliott took advantage of the VAT system to use public funds when her business got into financial difficulty.

"Not only has she served a prison sentence but she will now have to repay a significant amount of money she falsely claimed.

"In cases such as this, prosecution of a criminal offence does not mean the end of our involvement. We will use the laws available to us to ensure money obtained through crime is confiscated from those who do not deserve it and reinvested into the community."

(LM/MH)