A fraudster on the run from Britain will lose his £90m property empire and his Ferrari, a judge has ruled.

Arif Patel, 57, from Preston, Lancashire, led a gang convicted in 2023 of one of the UK's biggest carousel tax frauds.

The sock manufacturer, who now lives in Dubai , funded his empire with his crimes and must now pay back £90,503,211 with the sale of his properties in Preston, London and overseas.

The homes and business premises he owned will be taken off him after a confiscation order was granted by a judge at Chester Crown Court on Thursday.

Carousel fraud involves chains of fake business transactions used to steal VAT repayments.

Goods are moved between different companies in a circular pattern. This creates false export and import records used by criminals to claim b

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