Nottingham: The former manager of a city centre chicken shop has been jailed after fraudulently securing £50,000 in Covid support for a business he had sold the previous year.
Mujeebullah Khan applied for the maximum-value Bounce Back Loan on behalf of Chunky Chicken in May 2020. However, Khan and his business partner had sold the Shakespeare Street-based outlet in April 2019.
Khan, 38, of St Margaret’s Avenue, Nottingham, was sentenced to 22 months in prison when he appeared at Nottingham Crown Court on Wednesday, December 17. He completed repaying the loan in full shortly before sentencing.
The court heard that Khan falsely claimed Chunky Chicken was trading at the start of March 2020 as part of the loan application. All £50,000 was transferred two months later to a third party to repay a business debt.
David Snasdell, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said: “Mujeebullah Khan’s offending was very simple – he secured £50,000 in Covid support for a business he had sold the previous year. The Insolvency Service continues to prosecute Covid fraudsters and will take action against anyone who abused these schemes intended to help legitimate businesses during the pandemic.”
Khan was declared bankrupt in May 2021 and signed an eight-year Bankruptcy Restrictions Undertaking in September that year. The undertaking prevents him from borrowing more than £500 without disclosing his bankrupt status.
