A County Antrim businessman who fraudulently purchased 19 houses for the buy to let market has been ordered by the High Court to hand the properties over to the Serious Organised Crime Agency.

The Recovery Order was granted today in Belfast High Court, against 38 year old Thomas William Smyth after the Honourable Mr Justice Treacy deemed his property portfolio to be the proceeds of crime.

The recovered assets include his family home at Ballynure and 18 other houses in County Antrim and in Liverpool.

In its civil recovery application, SOCA submitted that Mr Smyth had obtained his property portfolio through mortgage fraud, tax evasion and money laundering.

SOCA’s investigation identified that between 2000 and 2007 Mr Smyth made numerous fraudulent self certification mortgage applications to a variety of financial institutions in order to obtain almost £2m in loans to buy property.

SOCA’s Andy Lewis said: “Thomas Smyth deliberately abused the system for his personal gain. This is a tough lesson but if you prop up your lifestyle through illicit profits SOCA will ensure you hand them back. “