Two fraudsters who were described by a judge as 'complete liars and devious' have been stripped of their £2.1 million country house in Bucks.

Syed Ahmed and Shakeel Ahmad, both 51, were initially jailed for seven years each in 2007 for their part in an organised crime gang VAT fraud worth £12.6 million which saw 21 individuals receiving sentences totalling 74 years. 

The pair refused to comply with a judge's order to repay the £16.1 million they obtained through the VAT fraud, instead choosing to extend their prison sentences by a further decade. 

While Ahmed and Ahmad, whom the judge at their trial described as "complete liars and devious", remain locked up, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) officers have continued to track down their hidden assets to recover money still owed from the case - an effort that has so far recovered around £10 million.

Officers have most recently seized a luxury Buckinghamshire house which was owned by the fraudsters but registered under an offshore company registered in the British Virgin Islands.

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The country house, which is set on 1.65 acres of countryside and consists of two kitchens, five reception rooms, five bedrooms and a sauna, has now been auctioned off by HMRC-appointed receivers at £2.1 million, more than double its guide price.

Other properties previously owned by Ahmed and Ahmad which have also now been sold by HMRC include a flat in Battersea Reach, London (£42,000), a house in Langley (£660,000) and a house in Northwood, Middlesex (£1 million).

Nicol Sheppard, Assistant Director in HMRC’s Fraud Investigation Service, said: “This house sale is a great result for taxpayers, and it shows our work does not stop with a prison sentence. It is our job to make sure taxpayers get their money back.

“We’ve recovered more than £10 million from these two men, and we’ll carry on looking for more assets. Any we find will be sold to recover the money they stole with interest.

“Anyone with information about suspected tax fraud can report it to the HMRC online.”