The UK government has disqualified Kingsman Property director Sam Eustace for 11 years after the company scammed £6.7m from investors by promising false investment returns including over 100%.

Kingsman Property promised landlords guaranteed rent all year round as well as offering investors the opportunity to receive annual returns of 30% by investing money into the rental HMO (house for multiple occupancy) sector.

The business was originally set up in October 2015 as Samuel James before changing its name to Kingsman Property in May 2017. 

The Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has accepted a disqualification undertaking from Eustace after he allowed Kingsman to trade with a lack of commercial probity, including offering false representations as to returns on investments. 

Eustace’s ban, which started on 24 March 2022 and will last for 11 years, prevents him from directly, or indirectly, becoming involved in the promotion, formation or management of a company, without the permission of the court.

Kingsman took at least £6.7m from would-be investors before it went into liquidation in August 2019.

An Insolvency Service investigation found that between October 2016 and March 2019, Kingsman Property paid out over £3m to investors, however, it was funded by the money received from new investors. 

Company accounts have revealed that the business was insolvent from June 2017, with debts totalling close to £700,000, which later increased to £5m when the company went into liquidation. 

Kingsman director Eustace paid himself dividends from the company between November 2017 and June 2019 which amounted to almost £400,000.

The Insolvency Service chief investigator Martin Gitner says: “Sam Eustace knew he was taking people’s hard-earned savings as part of a scam and has left countless people out of pocket.”

“The Insolvency Service will not hesitate to investigate and use its powers against those engage in this kind of fraud,” Gitner adds.