A green energy expert whose firm scammed £4million from customers for wind farm schemes has been banned from running companies for 14 years. Geoscientist Dr Paul Dougan was hit with the ban after a probe by the Insolvency Service found he used investors’ cash to fund separate property ventures instead of putting it into wind farm projects.
It slammed the “appalling scam” which it said robbed investors of “precious savings”. The probe found scores of investors were “misled” into putting their cash into a wind turbine scheme before Dougan’s firm went bust owing them £4.3million. But Dougan, who the Record traced to a flat in the Glasgow’s Lambhill, claimed he is now living on benefits.
The former Glasgow Caledonian University lecturer, 54, who drives an expensive Mercedes 4x4, said: “I was a stupid person who trusted other people. I’m now on universal credit. I don’t expect sympathy.”
The UK’s Insolvency Service said Dougan caused his firm DCR (Series 2) to fail to provide goods and services or to safeguard investor monies. They said the company used cash obtained from investors – who were told it would be used to finance wind turbine projects in Scotland – for other purposes, including to finance property development projects.
A report said investor funds received by DCR were sent to the bank account of its parent company. It said a large proportion of those funds were spent on related property projects for the parent company or other connected firms, “to which the investors obtained no benefit”.
It said Dougan caused the firm to “mislead investors in the marketing of the bonds for the company”. Investors were advised their cash was government protected, a security trustee had been appointed to safeguard their interests and insurance had been obtained from a reputable firm.
The Insolvency Service said: “None of those assertions were correct.”
Head of investigations at the Insolvency Service, Joanna Covell, said: “Paul Dougan not only ran an appalling scam which took precious savings from would-be investors but he flagrantly ignored his bankruptcy restrictions which prohibited him from acting as a company director.
“His company was closed and liquidated following an investigation by the Insolvency Service who then investigated his conduct and brought this disqualification action.
“The Court has now hit him with a lengthy ban that reflects the seriousness of his misconduct.”
When we approached Dougan, he told us he wanted to apologise to the victims but he was not to blame. He said: “I didn’t do it. I must be the most stupid fraudster in history because I didn’t benefit from that at all. I was acting in good faith.”
Dougan said he was in the process of appealing the decision to ban him from running companies for 14 years.
Until earlier this year, Dougan had been facing 147 criminal charges in Northern Ireland in connection with the same scheme but prosecutors withdrew the case for further investigation.
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