Richmond property mogul Myck Djurberg found guilty of £3.5 million houseboat scam

Property tycoon Myck Djurberg is facing jail after being found guilty of selling luxury houseboats worth £3.5 million without the proper legal permissions for buyers to live in them. Djurberg had purchased the Hampton Riviera boatyard and a number of expensive houseboats in 2011 with the intention of creating a premier marina resort. However, he did not have planning permission for the houseboats on the banks of the Thames in Richmond, and then proceeded to sell them without residential mooring licenses. Djurberg concealed this crucial information from buyers until after the deals were completed, leading to his conviction on three counts of fraud by false representation and one count of fraud.

After his conviction, the Crown Prosecution Service has indicated its intention to pursue Djurberg’s assets, including his extravagant imported 19th Century Swiss chalet in Surrey. Andrew West, a CPS prosecutor, stated that Djurberg financially benefited from the deception of his customers, and the prosecution will seek to ensure he pays back the illicit gains from his criminal activities. This legal action comes after a protracted dispute between Djurberg and clients who purchased the houseboats, with two couples winning a High Court battle in 2017 over their purchases of over £2 million. A judge ruled that Djurberg had misrepresented the truth and ordered him to refund the money to the couples.

Djurberg’s legal troubles extend beyond the houseboat fraud, as he was also convicted of assault in 2021 for an incident where he struck a tenant with gardening gloves before threatening him with a plastic roofing tool. The victim, Klaus Beversluis, had entered Djurberg’s office at the Hampton Riviera boatyard to dispute charges amounting to £5,500. In response, Djurberg physically attacked Beversluis and was subsequently sentenced to a 12-month community order that included rehabilitation sessions and mental health treatment. Police investigations into the houseboat fraud revealed that Djurberg had only obtained planning permission for leisure mooring, not residential purposes, and had failed to pay the necessary licensing fees to the Environment Agency.

Djurberg’s sentencing is scheduled for March 27, where he could potentially face a prison term for his fraudulent actions involving the sale of luxury houseboats without the proper legal permits. The prosecution’s pursuit of his assets and the efforts to recover the ill-gotten gains will seek to hold Djurberg accountable for his deceptive practices that led to financial losses for his customers. Despite previous legal victories by clients who successfully challenged Djurberg’s misrepresentation in court, the recent conviction marks a significant development in the ongoing saga surrounding the Hampton Riviera boatyard and the unscrupulous activities of the property tycoon.