Scottish conman duped luxury hotels with 'the Queen's favourite' tea

A CONMAN duped luxury hotels and retailers out of over £550,000 — by selling fake Scottish tea.

- By Elizabeth Hunter

Thomas Robinson, 52, ran an operation called The Wee Tea Plantation, claiming he cultivated Camellia sinensis tea plants at his Perthshire estate.

Robinson told high-end clients the brew he supplied to one of London’s five-star hotels was “the Queen’s favourite”.

He also misled genuine Scottish tea growers by selling them plants under the false pretence they were a unique Scottish-grown variety.

But a court heard he actually bought them from a nursery in Sussex and from abroad and then repacked the product.

Trust

Robinson has been found guilty on two counts of fraud amounting to £600,000 after an investigation by the Scottish Food Crime and Incidents Unit.