The director of a Salford catering supplies firm has been banned from acting as a company director for nearly a decade after a probe by the Insolvency Service.
Christopher McDonnell, 60, of Victoria Square in Manchester, was the sole director of Directline UK Limited.
The firm went into liquidation in January 2014 owing suppliers over £380,000.
It began trading from Quebec Building on Bury Street in central Salford in January 2009, supplying catering equipment as part of a group of companies.
In early 2013 the sole director and shareholder Mrs Wilde decided to sell the business.
On 1 March 2013 Christopher McDonnell was appointed as a director. On 1 April 2013 Mrs Wilde sold her shares to Mr McDonnell.
Mrs Wilde stayed on to assist Mr McDonnell and resigned as a director of Directline on 31 May 2013, leaving Mr McDonnell as the sole director.
Investigators found that in October and November 2013 Directline bought fresh and frozen meat, building equipment, stationary and computer equipment on credit.
The company ceased trading in November 2013, six months after Mr McDonnell’s appointment.
When it went bust the firm had no assets and liabilities of over £1 million.
Missing accounts meant investigators could not verify who paid or why receipts totalling £893,972 were put into the company’s bank account, nor find why payments of £713,587 were made to DirectlineUK.
They could also find no record of what what happened to purchases totalling almost half a million pounds – goods were delivered to warehouses employed by Directline and later removed by a number of unidentified parties.
Stock worth over £127,908 was also missing.
From 11 December 2015 Christopher McDonnell will be disqualified from acting as a director for 9 years for failing to maintain, preserve and deliver up accounting records to liquidators.
Cheryl Lambert, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said: “Mr McDonnell has failed to keep records and as consequence a number of transactions cannot be explained and creditors have lost substantial amounts of money.
“Directors who do not comply with this can expect to be investigated by the Insolvency Service and enforcement action taken to remove them from the marketplace.
“Taking action against Mr McDonnell is a warning to directors to take their duties and obligations seriously.”
