Tomb Raider composer jailed for Covid fraud

Peter Connelly, the renowned composer behind several Tomb Raider video game titles, has been sentenced to 16 months in jail after fraudulently obtaining a second Covid-19 Bounce Back Loan.

Connelly, 52, was found to have inflated his company’s turnover to secure an additional £37,500 loan, contravening the scheme’s rules which limited businesses to a single loan.

Durham Crown Court heard on Thursday, July 17, that Connelly, of Lambton Court, Peterlee, had legitimately secured an initial Bounce Back Loan of £22,000 in May 2020. However, just one month later, he applied to a different bank, falsely declaring his company’s turnover as £150,000 to obtain a larger, second loan.

Investigations by the Insolvency Service revealed his actual turnover was just over £58,000, a significant overstatement. Connelly also falsely declared that this was his only loan application.

David Snasdell, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, condemned Connelly’s actions, stating he “blatantly disregarded the rules of the Bounce Back Loan Scheme, designed to support small and medium-sized businesses during the pandemic.” Snasdell added, “Connelly not only secured two loans when businesses were only allowed one, but deliberately inflated his company’s turnover to receive more money than he was entitled to.”

Connelly, sole director of Peter Connelly Limited (formerly Universal Sound Design Limited), told Insolvency Service investigators that he had been offered a lucrative project to re-imagine the Tomb Raider soundtrack, a venture he claimed had stalled at the onset of the pandemic. He stated he had taken out personal loans and sold his car to fund this potential project.

Peter Connelly Limited went into liquidation in August 2021, with neither loan having been repaid. Connelly himself entered into an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) in June 2022 to address his debts, which remains active.

In addition to his jail sentence, Connelly has been disqualified from acting as a company director for six years. The Insolvency Service has affirmed its commitment to pursuing fraudsters who exploited the Bounce Back Loan Scheme during the national emergency.