Harlequin boss found guilty nine years after Caribbean investment scheme came to light

By Neasa MacErlean

David Ames, the man behind the fraudulent Harlequin hotel investment scheme in the Caribbean, has been found guilty of ‘fraud by abuse of position’ by a jury at Southwark Crown Court. The scheme attracted over 8,000 investors — many introduced by SIPP advisers, and their total losses amounted to £398 million.