A PROPERTY developer who squandered thousands on an extravagant lifestyle has been hit with Scotland's longest ever bankruptcy order.
Derek Carlyle, of Hamilton, Lanarkshire, spent the cash on "travelling, drinking, gambling, entertaining and partying" after pocketing £564,000 from the sale of a property – just a year before being declared bankrupt.
He breached bankruptcy rules by placing the money in his father's account, as well as failing to co-operate with his appointed trustee, and was hit with a 12-year Bankruptcy Restriction Order (BRO) at Hamilton Sheriff Court.
Government sequestration body the Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB) applied for the order and claimed that the money could have been used to pay off his creditors.
Rosemary Winter-Scott of the AiB said: "Bankruptcy Restrictions Orders and Undertakings are central to protecting not only the bankruptcy process, but the people and organisations owed money who suffer financially from irresponsible or unscrupulous behaviour.
"They also alert potential future creditors and employers that an individual has demonstrated inappropriate behaviour before or during their bankruptcy and may therefore be unsuitable for future credit or certain types of employment.
"A sheriff has the discretion to impose a BRO for up to 15 years and the severity of the misconduct in this case has resulted in the longest term to date."
Carlyle was declared bankrupt in 2009 following a court petition by one of his creditors, Jewson builders' merchants.
Prior to this, in August 2008, he sold one of his development properties in Bothwell, Lanarkshire, and deposited £563,941.70 in his father's account which he had control of. The money was then transferred to other bank accounts belonging to his family members and associates before being withdrawn in cash.
A spokesman for the AiB said: "When asked in court to account for this money – which could have been used to repay his creditors – he stated under oath he had given money to his mother, paid some legal fees and spent the remainder on an extravagant lifestyle of travelling, drinking, gambling and entertaining."
The BRO was granted by Sheriff Vincent Smith on three grounds of the Bankruptcy Scotland Act – the transfer of assets to another person, failure to account and failure to cooperate with his appointed trustee.
The order will restrict his ability to obtain credit or become a company director until 2024.
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