Boss denies defrauding blind workers' pensions

The former owner of a social enterprise has denied defrauding blind and disabled employees by failing to make pension contributions.
Nicholas Marks bought Soap maker Clarity, which was based in east London, out of administration in 2020.
The 56-year-old, from Beaconsfield in Buckinghamshire, appeared at Westminster Magistrates Court having been accused of not paying workers' pensions between 2020 and 2022.
He is next due in court on 8 May.
Clarity & Co was a social enterprise which had been providing employment opportunities for blind and disabled people since 1854.
It made toiletries under the Clarity, Soap Co. and Beco brands from its only factory – in Waltham Forest, east London.
The business, which has had patrons ranging from Queen Victoria to Joanna Lumley, was losing money and was put into administration in January 2020, before it was purchased by Mr Marks.
Clarity employed roughly 80 workers when it was sold, of whom 65 were blind, disabled, or had a health condition.
According to court documents Mr Marks, who was also the company's director, is charged with "fraud by abuse of position… namely by retaining employee and employer pension contributions, for yourself".
He is next due to appear in court at the Old Bailey.
Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to hello.bbclondon@bbc.co.uk
HM Courts & Tribunals Service
Missing: Boy with Southwark links gone for three months
Fraudster who tried to make £492,141 civil injury claim snared by Jeremy Kyle Show and surveillance footage
Holocaust survivor and pioneering journalist Hella Pick dies
Collier Row Mosque slams 'senseless vandalism' of sign
'Starmer's wife too intimidated to return home during pro-Palestine protest'
Man detained after ‘trying to self harm’ on bridge in Richmond
Hamas leader says three sons killed in air strike
'We are not fine': War casts shadow over Eid in Gaza
EU approves major overhaul of migration rules
Parched and shrinking – vital Moroccan dam dries up
Will Guyana's record growth benefit people in remote Essequibo?
Watch best moments from solar eclipse. VideoWatch best moments from solar eclipse
Peter Higgs – the man who changed our view of the Universe
'Why I rewrote Huckleberry Finn to give slave Jim a voice'
Is this K-drama? No, it's South Korea's election night
Boom times for US green energy as federal cash flows in
The new pace sensation lighting up IPL
Why is Russia trying to frame Ukraine for concert massacre?
Profound revelation, glorious chaos and a lot of laughs
Michael Sheen faces the interview of a lifetime where no question is off the table
Have you ever had 'beer fear'?
Lily Allen and Miquita Oliver answer your questions about the great British pub
Britain's most iconic and unexpected film locations
Ali Plumb travels through the silver screen sights of Norfolk
The plasterer who fought a boxing legend
Ten thousand people watched the unlikely fight in 1997
© 2024 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.

source