Indian-origin British businessman charged with bribing Antiguan minister

A British-Sikh businessman, who is a donor to both the Conservative and Labour parties, has been charged with bribing a minister from Antigua, reports UK newspaper The Telegraph.

Peter Virdee, 50, also known as Hardip Singh, is wanted by the National Crime Agency (NCA) in a multi-million-pound corruption probe.

On May 23, Virdee visited Westminster Magistrates’ Court, where he was being charged for bribing a foreign public official.

The bribery took place between January 2015 and July 2017, as per reports.

Virdee was seen paying off Asot Michael, the former minister for tourism, economic development, investment, and energy for Antigua and Barbuda.

The deal was allegedly beneficial for Virdee’s company, PV Energy, which is being charged for its failure to prevent bribery, according to The Telegraph.

Virdee, who was brought up in Birmingham, has a real-estate empire. A Rolls-Royce he owns has the 5INGH number plate, which costs around £250,000.

He donated £100,000 to the Conservative Party and £2,000 to a Labour Party minister. Currently, Virdee is out on bail and he will appear at Southwark Crown Court on June 20, 2024.

Virdee had been arrested a few years ago for tax fraud. That was filed by German authorities. Virdee was accused of a “VAT carousel” on EU carbon credits. Under this scheme, traders export credits from one member state to another in order to take advantage of EU VAT rules. Exporters do not pay VAT, but they do charge the VAT and defraud the customers.