Haulage business brothers disqualified as directors

Sean Convery (41), from Cherry Hill in Maghera, and 33-year-old Noel Convery from Moyagall Road in Portglenone ran Convery Haulage Ltd, which went bust last year owing £1.6m.

They agreed to disqualification respectively of their conduct as directors of the Company. Sean was disqualified for 12 years and Noel for 11.

The Company went into administration on May 4, 2011, with estimated total assets available for preferential creditors of £51,500, liabilities to preferential creditors of £2,200, liabilities to the floating chargeholders of £364,289, liabilities to non-preferential creditors of £1,304,905, and an estimated deficiency as regards creditors of £1,619,894.

After taking into account the losses incurred by member/shareholders of the Company the total estimated deficiency was £1,619,896. The Company subsequently went into liquidation in October, 2012.

The brothers admitted the company diverted excise goods to try and avoid full duty and smuggled goods to avoid excise duty.

They also used laundered fuel to avoid duty, failed to account for all company assets during the liquidation and withheld over £228,600 in Paye, national insurance and VAT.

They also bounced 193 cheques, totalling £829,000, with seven bouncing twice, and caused the company to incur needless bank charges by lodging personal cheques totalling £575,000, without enough funds to cover them.

They also allowed 83 direct debits with a value of £413,000 to be dishonoured and also failed to file annual returns on time.

And Sean Convery accepted that he had failed to account for money paid to him for the sale of company property and did not record the transaction in the accounting records.