The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has secured £1.1m in its first use of an Unexplained Wealth Order (UWO)
A five-bedroom property in the Lake District had been bought by Claire Schools, the ex-wife of convicted fraudster Timothy Schools, using money from his fraudulent investment scheme involving no win, no fee law firms.
The High Court granted the UWO in January, and Schools sold the property in April. Nick Ephgrave, director, SFO, said: ‘Unexplained wealth orders offer investigative opportunities to pursue assets on behalf of victims and taxpayers. This is our first successful use of this legislation and it certainly won’t be the last.’
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