Home / Crime and Justice / Inheritance spent on holidays, school fees unpaid
Inheritance spent on holidays, school fees unpaid
27 Mar
Summary
- Couple used inheritance on luxury holiday instead of fees.
- Over £106,000 owed for private school fees from 2012.
- Ex-husband jailed for 26 months, ex-wife received suspended sentence.
A bankrupt couple has been sentenced for using an inheritance to fund a luxury holiday instead of paying over £106,000 in private school fees. Gareth Sowter, 51, and Kim Sowter, 46, owed St Edmund's College in Hertfordshire for fees dating back to 2012.
When a substantial inheritance of £208,166 arrived in 2020, the divorced couple opted to spend part of it on a holiday. Gareth Sowter, who has a prior VAT fraud conviction, also diverted funds to family and friends to shield the money from creditors.
Kim Sowter admitted two fraudulent transfers and received an eight-month suspended sentence. Gareth Sowter pleaded guilty to eight charges and was jailed for 26 months, with the judge noting his 'deep sense of entitlement' and willingness to be dishonest. The judge highlighted how fee-paying schools can be vulnerable to such schemes.
The Insolvency Service emphasized that bankruptcy laws require assets to repay debts, not be gifted away. They stated that fraudulently transferring assets results in serious consequences, as seen in this case where promises to the school were broken.
