Surrey Restaurant Boss Jailed for Stealing £180k VAT to Fund Luxuries
The owner of a Surrey Chinese restaurant has been slammed with prison time after skimming £180,000 in VAT to pay her children’s school fees and fund a lavish lifestyle.
Huey Jun Khoo and business partner Jing Fu ran a sneaky scheme at the Bon East Chinese restaurant in Farnham. They used a secret “off-the-record” card machine to dodge VAT payments over four years, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) revealed.
Shady Card Machines and Burnt Records Exposed
The plot was uncovered when HMRC officers made a surprise visit in May 2015. They found two card machines: one official, the other linked to a bank account Khoo had opened under a chef’s name to hide payments.
Money from this hidden account was never declared, allowing the pair to pocket VAT cash illegally. After being caught, Khoo and Fu tried to cover their tracks by burning business records – but it was too little, too late.
Cash in Wardrobe and Designer Spending Revealed
Authorities found two incriminating documents at Khoo’s home in April 2016. They also discovered £12,000 in cash stuffed inside a wardrobe. Khoo and her husband Yong Hong Lu used the stolen cash on school fees, designer clothes, and holidays.
Sentences: Jail and Bans for VAT Crooks
- Huey Jun Khoo, 50: 3 years 9 months in prison, banned as a company director for 6 years.
- Yong Hong Lu, 51: 2 years in prison.
- Jing Fu, 49: 7 months suspended sentence, 120 hours community service.
The £12,000 found in their home was seized by authorities. HMRC is now working to recover the full amount stolen.
