A man who built a Buckingham Palace style mansion by dodging taxes has been jailed for a decade after he failed to pay back the whopping £2 million he owed to the public coffers.
Mohammed Suleman Khan (pictured) was handed a four year sentence in April 2014 after West Midlands Police discovered he had cheated the taxman to the tune of around £450,000.
In addition to the jail sentence Khan was ordered to pay back the cash by 10 October 2015 or face an additional default sentence of 10 years in prison.
When Khan failed to meet the deadline, detectives from the Regional Organised Crime Unit (ROCU) and specialist prosecutors from the Crown Prosecution Service's Proceeds of Crime unit (CPSPOC) brought the 43-year-old back before the court.
And on Thursday (5 February) magistrates in Birmingham imposed the 10 years default sentence.
Khan was also found to still be liable for the £2,209,090.00, which is growing by a staggering £484.18 a day in interest.
Efforts are now underway to seize the assets of the ‘businessman’ which, when sold, will see the cash ploughed back into crime fighting.
Detective Inspector Jonathan Jones, from the ROCU, said; “The court’s findings have proved to be a punishing blow for Khan who has been found to have deliberately swerved tax and national insurance payments.
“Every other hard working person has to pay these bills which fund essential services like the NHS. For some reason Khan though he was above the laws which bind us all.”
The case dates back to 2011 when Khan was arrested from his gated Edgbaston residency on suspicion of money laundering.
The lengthy police probe - sparked by the concerns of local people - found evidence of tax and national insurance evasion.
Detectives from Force CID worked with HM Revenue and Customs officials to look into the finances of the Birmingham born debt collector and businessman who claimed to have an annual income of no more than £40,000.
But despite finding 13 paper wraps banks use to secure £1,000 bundles all bearing the same date stamp, and after scrutinising phone and computer records, there were limited financial records leading investigators to believe that Khan only used cash and had few assets.
Determined to uncover the truth, detectives worked with the social policy research charity, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, to compare cost of living fees with his lifestyle and established that to maintain his lavish standard of living would require earnings in excess of £1 million over the nine year period between 2001 and 2012.
The inquiry also uncovered plans for a house the size of Buckingham Palace in Ghorghusti in the Attok region of Pakistan (pictured).
The blueprints showed the mansion which boasted its own cinema, library, servants’ quarters and even a guard house for a private security team.
Experts estimated that construction would have cost £2.3 million although there was no official record of ownership.
Talking about their bid to return the cash to public finances, James Francis, from Crown Prosecution Service's Proceeds of Crime unit, said: “Just over one year ago CPSPOC and ROCU formed a unique team, placing specialists side by side to work on complex asset recovery cases with the aim to see justice done quickly and efficiently by reducing cost and sharing information.
“The results have been phenomenal so far and whilst Mr Khan has failed to pay his sum, the activation of the default sentence is just the start of a process designed to strip him of his criminal gains.
“This success should serve as a warning to others. We’ll make sure crime doesn’t pay. We will pursue so-called ‘crime lords’ and take back their ill-gotten gains for the benefit of local people.”
For more information on the Regional Organised Crime Unit and how Midlands police forces, the CPS and others are taking down some of region’s major criminals visit: www.wmrocu.org.uk
↧