A director of a takeaway in Oldham has received a lengthy ban after he failed to explain funds amounting to more than £600,000 - and for exploiting a Covid loan.

Hafiz Muhammed Rizwan, of Windsor Road in Oldham, has been disqualified by the Insolvency Service after a series of mysterious accounting records came to light when he was the director of the takeaway, BBQD on Union Street.

The liquidator found an absence of records, dated from February 1, 2020, to July 16, 2021, to verify whether the funds were from the "genuine business income of BBQD".

The ban notice reveals Rizwan was unable to explain funds of £351,381, which were received into BBQD's business bank account, plus whether £275,758 paid out from the account were for "genuine purchases and genuine business expenses" of the town centre takeaway.

Rizwan further failed to determine to the liquidator if another £15,308, paid from the business' bank account, were for the benefit of the business.

A sum of £47,879 also remains unexplained which was paid in cash from BBQD's business account while funds of "at least" £26,775 were paid to Rizwan in addition to his wages.

The Insolvency Service found Rizwan was unable to confirm the accuracy of his director's loan account at the date of liquidation to justify the amount he received.

In addition, it was discovered Rizwan had gained a Coronavirus Bounce Back Loan (BBL) of £20,000 in May 2020.

The loan scheme was created in 2020 by the government to help businesses recover from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, Rizwan was unable to explain if the loan he received was used to "meet the genuine business expenses of BBQD and the economic benefit of BBQD".

The notice continues that the liquidator was unable to determine "if and when" BBQD should have been registered for VAT purposes and, given the large sums received, if the takeaway accounted for the monies to HM Revenue and Customs in respect of its trading activities.

As a result, the 41-year-old has been disqualified from acting as a company director for six years starting from March 3, 2023.

The company was formally liquidated on January 5, 2023, and a new director, Sheik Shalehan, has taken over the takeaway under a new company name.