The former President of the Association of Taxation Technicians and three of his business associates who administered a pension scheme, have been charged with stealing £5 million through a tax fraud targeting the pension industry.

The four – three men and a woman – were arrested last year in dawn raids carried out by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) investigating an alleged multi million pound fraud. The raids took place at residential and business premises in the West Midlands, Derby and Leicester.

The defendants have all been bailed until 9 November 2011 to appear at Birmingham Crown Court. The defendants are Andrew Meeson, Peter Spencer Bradley, Alison Jayne Bradley and Steven Price.

In conjunction with HMRC executing the search warrants last year The Pensions Regulator took action to suspend Tudor Capital Management Ltd from acting as trustees from pension trust schemes.

Simon De Kayne, assistant director of criminal investigation for HMRC, said: “Today four people have been charged linked to what we believe is a fraud resulting in over £5 million being stolen from public funds.