HM Revenue & Customs raised concerns with Patisserie Valerie’s parent company that some of its invoices and cheques had been forged more than two years before the café chain revealed an alleged fraud that led to its collapse, The Times has learnt.
The tax authority sent letters to Patisserie Holdings in 2016 questioning the authenticity of documents submitted as part of its tax return.
The correspondence between HMRC and the company raises more questions about why the gap in the accounts was not revealed before October 2018. It also raises questions as to whether the tax authority alerted the Serious Fraud Office to its concerns over the possible forgery of documents.
