A man has been found guilty of fraud totalling almost £600,000 after he passed off ordinary tea as a premium product grown in Scotland.
Thomas Robinson, 52, claimed the tea was a unique variety he had grown at his Perthshire estate using innovative techniques.
Operating as The Wee Tea Plantation, he then fraudulently sold it to high-profile clients in the hospitality sector, including luxury hotels and retailers, between January 2014 and February 2019.
Varieties listed on the website – which touted partnerships with train operator Caledonian Sleeper and the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh – include Dalreoch White, Silver Needles, Scottish Antlers Tea, and Highland Green.
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Also known as Tam O’Braan and Thomas O’Brien, Robinson was found to have misled genuine Scottish tea growers by selling them plants he falsely claimed were a unique, locally-grown variety.
He also bolstered his credibility by fabricating academic qualifications and industry awards.
An investigation by Food Standards Scotland (FSS) found Robinson’s misrepresentations led to his clients losing a total of £584,783.
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He was found guilty of two counts of fraud by a jury at Falkirk Sheriff Court on Thursday, and is due to be sentenced at Stirling Sheriff Court on 25 June.
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In a statement, Ron McNaughton, head of Scottish food crime and incidents unit at FSS, said: “This was not a victimless crime – individuals, businesses, and an emerging sector of genuine Scottish tea growers suffered real financial and reputational harm as a result of deliberate deception.”
He then thanked a witness who came forward and added: “Fraud of this nature is often difficult to detect and even harder to prove, but we were determined to pursue every line of inquiry to build the strongest possible case.”
