A HAMPSHIRE property consultant has been jailed for two years after conning the taxman out of £77,000 – by using his ex-wife’s VAT registration number.

Mark Burdge, of Broughton near Stockbridge, was found guilty of defrauding HM Revenue and Customs of the large amount of tax-payable cash at Bristol Crown Court.

The 52-year-old, of Horsebridge Road, charged and invoiced his customers VAT, fraudulently using his ex-wife’s VAT number, but failed to declare or pay £29,000 to HMRC.

He also failed to disclose his full income through Self Assessment, evading £48,000 in Income Tax. These incidents took place between June 2010 and April 2014.

However, during the investigation, Burdge submitted further false documents as evidence in an attempt to reduce the amount of VAT already evaded. Suspecting these documents had also been faked, HMRC investigators arrested Burdge for attempting to pervert the course of justice – for which he was also found guilty.

As a result, Burdge was sentenced to 24 months in prison – 16 months for the tax fraud and eight months for perverting the course of justice. He will serve half in prison and half on licence.

A HMRC spokeswoman said the body was happy that justice had been carried out.

“Mark Burdge stole from public services and would have continued his fraud had HMRC not stopped him through our taskforce investigations,” she added.

“Most people pay what they owe, when they owe it, and it is not right that some people choose to ignore their obligations and gain an unfair advantage. Our message is clear – if you steal from the public purse, we will investigate.”

The fraud was discovered as part of HMRC’s taskforce activity, targeting individuals and businesses suspected of not paying the correct tax.

Taskforces target specific high-risk sectors where there is a risk that some are not paying the tax they owe. Since taskforces began in May 2011, more than 140 taskforces have been launched, bringing in more than £540 million.

They bring together various HMRC compliance and enforcement teams for intensive bursts of activity targeted at specific sectors and locations where there is evidence of high risk of tax evasion and fraud.

The teams visit traders to examine their records and carry out other investigations.

Anyone with information about tax fraud has been asked to call HMRC’s hotline on 0800 59 5000 or report it online at gov.uk/topic/dealing-with-hmrc/tax-compliance