A former director of Baldwins Travel and head of its parent group was sentenced to 22 months in prison yesterday after being found guilty of contempt of court.
Jack Mason, chief executive of Inc & Co Group which acquired Baldwins in September 2021 and a Baldwins director until last December, was sentenced in his absence after counsel acting on his behalf told the High Court he “could not face attending the hearing”.
Mason was found guilty in the High Court on July 31 of breaching three freezing orders obtained by Barclays Bank.
The judge, Justice Rajah, ruled that Mason be arrested and committed to prison on his return to the UK from Spain where he is living. Mason will face separate contempt proceedings for breaching undertakings he gave to attend the hearing when he was allowed to retain his passport and travel to Spain after being ordered to surrender it by the High Court.
Fellow respondent David Antrobus, Inc & Co chief technology officer and director, was also sentenced in his absence to 22 months in prison for contempt for breaching the freezing orders.
Counsel for Antrobus told the Court he had been unable to board a flight from Ireland, where he has moved since the guilty verdict, owing to “a panic attack”. The judge ordered warrants for the arrest of both men.
A third respondent Scott Dylan, described as a “person of significant control” in the group which owned Baldwins, likewise received a 22-month jail sentence having pleaded guilty to contempt mid-way through the trial.
The judge found there was “a joint enterprise by all three” respondents to breach the orders obtained by Barclays after it launched proceedings against the three, and other parties including Inc & Co, in November 2021 alleging a conspiracy “to make unauthorised borrowings” of £13.7 million.
Barclays argued the three undertook to move two UK holding companies and their assets, which were subject to the orders, first to the British Virgin Islands (BVIs) and then to the US state of Delaware.
One of the assets was Baldwins parent Inc Travel Group, an Inc & Co subsidiary, with the transfer including 100% of the shareholdings in Baldwins. Inc & Co was jointly owned by Mason and a company called Fresh Thinking Group owned by Antrobus and Dylan.
The freezing orders – against Inc Travel, Fresh Thinking and Mason – had prohibited the disposal of assets and identified shares in Baldwins “as assets to which the order applied”.
In sentencing Dylan, High Court judge Justice Rajah described the transfer of assets as “his plan” and said: “He was the main implementer.”
The judge noted Dylan had waited “until the last possible opportunity” before admitting his guilt.
He allowed a 5% ‘credit’ for this admission in setting Dylan’s sentence at 22 months.
The judge said he considered Mason and Antrobus “slightly less culpable”, but said: “They signed up to Dylan’s plan.”
He noted all three would be entitled to unconditional release after 11 months of their sentences, and said remission of up to 12 months in the full sentences may be applied in the event of the transfer of all the assets back to the jurisdiction of the Court.
Justice Rajah accepted a provisional claim for £1.5 million in legal costs on behalf of Barclays and imposed an interim order on the three defendants to pay 60% of this amount.
When counsel for the defendants challenged the costs, Justice Rajah told them: “The defendants fought them [Barclays] all the way.
“The respondents have dragged this out for a year, and . . . the assets remain hidden offshore. They have lied prolifically.”
He said: “All three respondents have not cooperated and have refused to provide information. They have obfuscated and created false stories. This could be described as a two-year conspiracy. They have lied to the court on a prolific scale.
“The amount of costs is eyewatering and there may be a reduction. But it will be for a costs judge to decide.”
In a statement following the guilty verdicts in July, Baldwins Travel directors Nick Marks, Chris Hatfield and Dan Shaw said: “This does not affect the day to day running of Baldwins Travel. Since December 2023, Jack Mason, Dave Antrobus and Scott Dylan are not involved or have any dealings with Baldwins.”
The main proceedings on Barclays’ claim to recover £13.7 million are expected next year, but have been postponed from January.