A hypnotherapist has been fined £6,000 after admitting not properly declaring political contributions in a case linked to a missing £10.25m loan to Northampton Town FC.
Alan Mayfield admitted paying £10,000 to Northampton South Conservative Association in 2014 without declaring he was not the source of the money, He broke down as he was sentenced at Northampton Magistrates’ Court. Mayfield will also have to pay £220 in court costs and a £120 victim surcharge.
The case is the first to be brought under a law prohibiting disguised donations to a political party.
Mayfield, 64, of Hill Farm Road, Chalfont St Peter, Buckinghamshire, was charged by detectives investigating the disappearance of £10.25m loaned to the football club by the now-defunct Northampton Borough Council.
Mayfield was accused of breaching Section 54 of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendum Act 2000 which states those donating sums exceeding £500 to a political party have to state where the money originates from.
The magistrates were told Mayfield donated £10,000 to the election campaign of former Conservative MP David Mackintosh in May 2014. They heard how £11,000 was transferred to Mayfield’s account by Howard Grossman via Mr Grossman’s company 1st Land Ltd. The company was set up to carry out the redevelopment of Northampton Town’s Sixfields Stadium and received the bulk of the loan money. Three days later, Mayfield paid £10,000 to Northampton South Conservative Association.
Passing sentence on Mayfield, magistrate Dominic Goble told him: "We find that there is a high level of culpability in that you knowingly facilitated the transfer of funds from another person.
Four other defendants appeared with Mayfield.
Husband and wife Nutan Bhimjiyani, 60, and Sharad Bhimjiyani, 65, both of Headstone Lane, Harrow, did not enter a plea. Gary Platt, 65, of West Drive, Harrow; and Leonard Western, 71, of Holmside Rise, South Oxhey, Watford, both pleaded not guilty. Nirav Vinodray Sheth, 47, of Uppingham Avenue, Stanmore, did not appear before magistrates, but will face crown court trial.
Obviously, Mayfield was just a dupe but the case has shone a light on the machinations behind donations to political parties, who themselves might be unaware of the criminality involved.
The Crown Court cases will be far more revealing.