Sophia Beckford bag designer is tried for fraud

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Aug 24, 2017

US-born London designer Elle Tyree is being tried for fraud after accusations that she conned over £300,000 out of her investors in order to support her lifestyle.

The designer had launched her Sophia Beckford handbag range earlier this decade and gained a lot of publicity collaborations with Corrie Nielsen and Emilio de la Morena.

But the court was told yesterday that she got investor Churchside Estates Ltd to put almost £134,000 into the business in 2015 and 2016 on the promise of an order from a US department store chain, The Standard reported. The prosecutor said the money was paid directly into her bank account rather than to manufacturer Verniri.

The second investor, Corporate Commercial Collections Ltd, is alleged to have funded her to the tune of over £187,000 based on fake invoices and bank statements that were designed to make her look more successful than she was.

The prosecutor also said that the police found actual bank statements after a police search of her London home and they were completely different from those shown to the investor. They are alleged to have shown money paid by the investors being spent on rent or withdrawn as cash.

Tyree is alleged to have placed orders for only 14 handbags at a cost of less than £3,000. She denies the charges against her.