Ex-deckchair “wheeler dealer” fined £75k

Thursday 14 February 2019

After 406 days in jail, a former deckchair concessionaire has been fined £75,000 and sentenced to time served after she was caught evading tax, laundering her undeclared income and being in possession of five bars of cannabis resin.

Joanne Jones (49) appeared in the Royal Court to be sentenced for a total of ten charges brought against her – one relating to the drugs possession with intent to supply, and nine in connection with fraudulent tax declarations and her use of the income she didn’t declare.

The sentence of time served and a fine of £75,000 was eventually passed despite efforts from the prosecution to adjourn the matter whilst they sought advice about bringing civil proceedings against Jones. 

At the outset of the sentencing hearing, Crown Advocate David Hopwood asked for an adjournment of three months, indicating that the Attorney General is investigating the prospect of pursuing a ‘forfeiture of assets’ case against Jones. According to the law, this means that the Crown could seize any funds that are suspected of being involved in, or intended for “unlawful conduct,” via a civil case. 

This comes after Jones was acquitted of criminal charges which accused her of hiding and laundering drugs money. 

Pictured: Joanne Jones was acquitted by the Royal Court after a two-week criminal trial into whether she was laundering and concealing drugs money.

Advocate Michael Haines, representing Jones at yesterday’s sentencing hearing, described the Crown Advocate’s request as “wholly inappropriate” – a sentiment which was apparently echoed by Royal Court Commissioner Julian Clyde-Smith who, having retired with Jurats Pitman and Ramsden to consider whether they would allow the adjournment, told the Crown Advocate that “the situation is unsatisfactory to say the least.”

It was at this point that the Solicitor General Mark Temple was sent for to clarify the Crown’s position.

Having left his post in the States’ Chamber, the Solicitor General informed the Court that upon reflection, the Crown would “not be applying for an adjournment.”

However, the Solicitor General left the door open for further civil proceedings, saying that he “cannot confirm that the Attorney General wouldn’t be pursuing an application for civil forfeiture in the future” and that the Law Officers’ Department would “need time to reflect upon that.”

Pictured: The Solicitor General Mark Temple was requested to appear in Court and he left the door open for the Crown to bring civil proceedings.

Over an hour into proceedings, the sentencing hearing got underway with Crown Advocate Hopwood summarising the case for the Court.

The Crown’s summary explains that the former deckchair concessionaire was arrested after Police officers searching her car washing business ‘Soapy Jo’s’ in St. Brelade’s Bay found “five bars of cannabis resin weighing a total of 487.25grams… concealed behind some air conditioning vents.”

The Court heard that this amount of cannabis has a wholesale value of between £4,000 and £6,000 or, if sold as single deals, they could be worth between £7,500 and £10,000.

Jones pleaded guilty to this drugs charge on the basis that “she was minding the cannabis for another person.”

The other offences relate to six fraudulent tax declarations whereby Jones declared that she earned £275,558.55 less than she actually had and therefore owed a total of £65,825.99 in unpaid income tax.

Jones has previously admitted submitting these fraudulent declarations as well as laundering this illegally untaxed income. 

Having made his submissions to the Court, Crown Advocate Hopwood invited the Commissioner and the Jurats to impose a total sentence of 20 months’ imprisonment – time which Jones has already served on remand – and a fine of £90,000. 

Pictured: Jones admitted to six counts of making false tax declarations.

Contrastingly, Defence Advocate Haines recommended imposing a community service order as well as time served, instead of a financial penalty. 

Addressing the Court, Advocate Haines emphasised what he described as his client’s “exceptional” circumstances which justied a more lenient sentence. 

Amongst these, the Defence Advocate spoke of Jones’s “cooperation” throughout the lengthy investigation and legal proceedings, her “excellent personal references” and employment record as well as the “breakup of her family” as a result of her offending. 

Ultimately, Commissioner Clyde-Smith and the Jurats sentenced Jones to a 20 month prison sentence - time she has already served – as well as a £75,000 – a fine which the 49-year-old will have three months to pay. 

The Commissioner also ordered for Jones’s tax debts to be paid out of cash seized from her house last year which is currently held by the Viscount, as well as ordering for the forfeiture and destruction of the cannabis resin.