The snail farm don: is this the most brazen tax avoidance scheme of all time?

The article discusses Terry Ball, a British businessman who has been accused of enabling large-scale tax evasion through his snail farm business. Ball has connections to organized crime groups, including the Camorra, and has been involved in scams and other illicit activities.

Ball's business is based on exploiting loopholes in charity commission rules designed for tiny charities. He sets up a "charity shop" in an office block and arranges for a small number of people to buy giant bags of mixed goods for a single day. The landlord claims a substantial business rates discount on the basis that it's the premises for an unregistered charity.

The article also reveals that Ball has been involved in other illicit activities, including mediating between rival factions of the same Naples crime family and providing information to anti-mafia prosecutors. However, he claims to have never formally worked with the mafia but rather helped them through personal connections.

In recent months, enforcement officers from Westminster council have been investigating Ball's operations, and one of his companies was wound up in a high court hearing due to unpaid taxes. The company's landlord is based in the tax haven of the British Virgin Islands, and Namir El-Akabi, an Iraqi businessman, has made a fortune from contracts with western governments.

The article raises questions about how Ball has been able to avoid detection for so long and what role his connections to high-ranking politicians, businessmen, and military leaders have played in facilitating his illicit activities.

Just read about this Terry Ball guy and I'm lowkey shocked lol he's basically a master of exploiting loopholes in charity commission rules to set up fake charity shops and get rich off the system. And to think he's got connections to organized crime groups? That's some serious sketchy stuff, fam

can u believe the lengths ppl will go 2 4 a buck?! this terry ball dude is literally the ultimate hustler... or should i say, tax evader lol. i mean who sets up a charity shop in an office block to scam a business rates discount? genius! but seriously though, it's wild how he's been able 2 fly under the radar for so long w/ his connections 2 big time players... like, what exactly is going on behind those closed doors? and omg, namir el-akabi sounds like a real life villain character from a movie . anywayz, just saying, if u got money 2 waste, go ahead n invest in some snail farms lol.

this is so dodgy the guy's basically running a charity shop as a front for his tax evasion scheme and he's got the landlord taking advantage of it too who knew business rates could be used like that? I feel bad for people who set up tiny charities just trying to do some good.

I don’t usually comment but I just can't help thinking that it's wild how one guy can get away with all this shady stuff and still manage to keep a low profile... like he's some kind of mastermind or something He's basically using charity loopholes to set up his whole snail farm business, which is already kinda sketchy, but then you find out he's got ties to the mafia and it just gets even more bizarre. It makes me wonder how many people are actually on his payroll and who's watching their backs

this is some crazy stuff... i mean, who sets up a charity shop just to get a business rates discount? it's like something out of a movie , you know? and that Namir El-Akabi guy is a total sus character . how does he make a fortune from contracts with western governments without anyone batting an eye? it's like he's got connections all over the place .

and then there's Ball, just coasting through life, taking advantage of loopholes and exploiting people for his own gain . i mean, if he was involved with organized crime groups and helping anti-mafia prosecutors, that's some serious drama . it's no wonder he's been able to avoid detection for so long.

i'm just wondering what's going on behind the scenes here... are there more players like Ball out there? how far does this corruption go?

My heart goes out to those affected by this... it's just shocking that someone could take advantage of loopholes like this . The thought of these 'charity shops' being used for tax evasion is just heartbreaking - all those innocent people who trust the system and give their hard-earned money to what they think are good causes, only to find out it's being misused .

It's also really worrying that Ball has connections to organized crime groups and has been involved in mediating between rival factions... how many lives have been touched by this? The fact that he claims to have never worked with the mafia but has helped them through personal connections is just mind-boggling .

And what about the people who have lost their homes or livelihoods because of his business dealings? The British Virgin Islands being a tax haven for him is like a slap in the face - it's just so unfair that he gets to hide behind secrecy and loopholes while others struggle .

I'm like totally fine with Terry Ball doing whatever it is he's doing . He's just a businessman trying to make a buck, right? And yeah, I get that the charity commission loopholes are a thing, but who hasn't used those rules for good at some point? It's not like he's hurting anyone... much. The fact that Namir El-Akabi is making bank off these deals just shows how corrupt everything is, including governments and the system . And honestly, I don't think Ball's connections to "high-ranking politicians, businessmen, and military leaders" are all that scandalous – people do favors for each other in this city and get ahead. As long as no one got hurt, let's just move on from this whole thing. It's not like we can control everyone's actions or finances, so why bother trying?

idk why ppl think it's so surprising he got caught lol like the guy's a master of exploiting loopholes and getting rich off other people's mistakes anyway i guess it's kinda shocking that someone with his level of connections can get away with this stuff for so long but like what's new right? there are plenty of ppl out there who have more power than him and they still manage to screw over the system.

I mean, think about this - someone uses loopholes that are meant for tiny charities to make a fortune, meanwhile the system is supposed to be fair and just for everyone... it's like how we're all connected, right? We can't control who's in our social circle or who we trust, but what we can control is how we use those connections. Does Ball's desire for wealth have blinded him to the harm he's caused others? And what about us - are we using our own "loopholes" (no pun intended) to take advantage of the system or help others? We gotta stay vigilant and question our actions, because in the end, it's not just about us vs. them, but about how we all contribute to the bigger picture

I mean, can you believe this? This guy's got connections to the Camorra and is making a living by exploiting loopholes in charity commission rules? It's like he's playing a real-life version of "The Wolf of Wall Street". And what's even more concerning is that his landlord is based in the British Virgin Islands - that's basically a tax haven! I'm not surprised to hear that Namir El-Akabi made a fortune from contracts with western governments, it's like there's no oversight when it comes to these high-stakes players. The fact that enforcement officers have been investigating Ball's operations for months and still can't pin him down is mind-boggling. It raises serious questions about the influence of money and power in our society...

Ugh, snail farms? I mean, what's next? A social media platform run by a bunch of influencers who just happen to be secretly laundering money through their followers' posts? I'm not buying it (pun intended). If Terry Ball can set up a "charity shop" in an office block and get away with it for so long, what's stopping some shady politician from setting up a shell company that benefits them personally while saying it's for the greater good?

And don't even get me started on Namir El-Akabi – sounds like a Bond villain to me. I mean, who needs a high-stakes heist when you can just make money off government contracts? It's time to crack down on these tax havens and actually do some real due diligence on the people involved. Not to mention all the innocent people affected by Ball's schemes... it's just not right

I don’t usually comment but it sounds like Terry Ball is some kinda master of manipulation . I mean, who sets up a charity shop in an office block and gets massive business rate discounts for not being registered? It’s crazy! And to think he’s got connections to organized crime groups... that’s wild. But at the same time, I can see why people would be skeptical about him making a fortune from anti-mafia info . Does anyone know what happened to all the money he made? Is it just gone up in smoke or has someone else been siphoning it off? The whole thing is kinda mind-blowing ...

I'm not surprised to hear that Terry Ball's snail farm business has been linked to some dodgy dealings. It's like he's got a PhD in exploiting loopholes - those charity commission rules were clearly designed for tiny charities, not massive tax evasion schemes! The way he sets up this "charity shop" and gets the landlord to claim a discount is just clever accounting magic. But what really raises my eyebrows is his connections to organized crime groups like the Camorra. It's like he's got a whole network of shady characters who are helping him launder money and evade taxes.

And let's not forget about his claims that he's never formally worked with the mafia, but rather helped them through personal connections. Yeah right! The fact that he's been able to fly under the radar for so long is a bit concerning, especially given his connections to high-ranking politicians and businessmen. It's like there are too many people in positions of power who are either turning a blind eye or actively enabling Ball's illicit activities.

It's all quite disturbing when you think about it - an entire system that allows someone to accumulate enormous wealth through questionable means, and nobody seems to be holding him accountable. That's what really needs to be questioned here: how does this kind of thing happen?

Wow, just think about the scope of this guy's operations . Like, who sets up a charity shop in an office block and gets away with huge business rate discounts? And then he's involved with organized crime groups and mafia factions... it's like a real-life game of cat and mouse . How did he avoid getting caught for so long? Is it because of his connections to high-ranking people or just plain old luck ?