Bus driver sentenced over Covid loans con

35-YEAR-OLD EXPLOITED ‘BOUNCE BACK’ SCHEME TO TUNE OF £30,000

- ANNABAL BAGDI

A WOLVERHAMPTON conman who pocketed £30,000 in Covid loans he was not entitled to has avoided time behind bars.

Sohail Cheema claimed his company Sohail Cheema Limited had a turnover of £60,000 when he applied to two separate banks for Bounce Back Loans of £15,000 in 2020.

But the firm, which was set up for him to gain agency employment as a self-employed bus driver, was not actually trading.

The 35-year-old was granted the cash but transferred it out of his business bank accounts on the same day he received the funds.

He then sent the money to personal accounts belonging to himself and his wife.

The cash eventually formed part of a £90,000 payment to a third party in August 2021. There is “no evidence that any of the £30,000 was used for the economic benefit of the business, as was required under the scheme”, the Insolvency Service said.