UK fraudsters targeted wine investment scam victims

Two companies who ripped off investors who had previously fallen victim to wine investment scams have been closed in the public interest by the UK's High Court.

An investigation by the Insolvency Service found the companies, Capital Bordeaux Investments Ltd and Capital Bordeaux Investment Corporate Ltd, targeted people who had already lost money in wine investment scams, by saying it could help them recoup losses - if they bought more wine.

The two companies were founded in 2012 and one of their bank accounts showed receipts of £243,980 the Insolvency Service reported. Former clients of Worldwide Wine Investments and Bordeaux UK Ltd were amongst those targeted.

‘These companies cynically targeted people who had already lost money in other wine investment scams and exploited their desire to try and recover some of their original investment,’ said Colin Cronin, an investigation supervisor with the Insolvency Service.

‘The companies were incapable of recovering such losses. Significantly, none of the funds received from investors were used to buy wine and were instead used for the benefit of those in control of the companies.’