Politics
Asian fraud mastermind now living in Dubai loses £90m property empire and Ferrari
LONDON: A self-styled British Asian clothing tycoon who sold counterfeit socks and pants while operating an extensive fraud ring will have all his UK assets seized after the Crown Prosecution Service won a court order to confiscate up to £90m worth of property and luxury cars, a UK judge has ruled.
Arif Patel, 57, from Preston, Lancashire, who has been on the run since 2011, will have homes and business premises he owned taken from him after a confiscation order granted by a judge at Chester crown court.
His Ferrari 575 Superamerica will be sold at auction, as will property in Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, the court has ruled.
Patel masterminded a gang that was convicted in 2023 of one of the UK’s biggest VAT tax frauds in HMRC’s history. Carousel fraud involves chains of fake business transactions used to steal VAT repayments. Goods are moved between different companies in a circular pattern. This creates false export and import records used by criminals to claim back large sums from tax authorities.
His operation stole millions through VAT repayment claims on false exports of mobile phones and textiles. They also imported and sold counterfeit clothes. These would have been worth £50m had they been genuine. Patel also owned properties in Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Turkey.
His restrained property assets will be sold and the money put back into the public coffers under the order.
During a 14-week trial, Patel and his co-accused, Mohamed Jaffer Ali, 61, of Dubai, were both found guilty in their absence of fraud and money laundering offences.
Richard Las, director, Fraud Investigation Service, HMRC, said: “Arif Patel lived a lavish lifestyle at the expense of the law-abiding majority, but he will now lose the property empire he amassed from the proceeds of crime.
“Our work never stops at conviction. For the last two years, we’ve worked with police and CPS partners to secure one of the biggest criminal confiscations we’ve ever recovered.”
Mark Winstanley, Assistant Chief Constable, Lancashire Constabulary, said: “Arif Patel was the head of a Preston-based organised crime group responsible for causing millions of pounds worth of losses to multiple companies.
“His actions, motivated by greed, directly impacted the taxpayer.”
Patel ran his illegal scheme using Preston-based import/export company Faisaltex Ltd.
He travelled to Dubai in July 2011 and failed to return. He was tried in his absence at Chester Crown Court, where he was found guilty of all charges.
Together, Patel and Ali were sentenced in their absence to a total of 31 years in prison. The UK has a formal extradition treaty with Dubai.
Adrian Foster, Chief Crown Prosecutor of the Crown Prosecution Service Proceeds of Crime Division, said: “The CPS has worked robustly with HMRC and Lancashire Police to ensure that Arif Patel could not keep the benefit from his fake counterfeit designer clothes scam and fraudulent VAT claims. In total, he must pay back more than £90 million or have more prison time added to his original sentence. In the last five years, £478 million has been recovered from CPS obtained Confiscation Orders, ensuring that thousands of convicted criminals cannot profit from their offending. Over £95 million of that amount has been returned to victims of crime, by way of compensation.”
Torrential rains have caused chaos in Saudi Arabia’s southwestern Asir region, where flash floods swept away dozens of vehicles.
Saudi media reports that the National Center for Meteorology (NCM) has issued a severe weather alert, warning of heavy downpours, thunderstorms, and potential flooding across multiple regions, including Najran, Jazan, Asir, Al-Baha, Makkah, and Madinah.
The forecast also includes strong winds, hailstorms, and sandstorms, which could significantly reduce visibility in parts of the Kingdom.
Authorities have appealed to residents to take precautionary measures, avoid flood-prone areas, and adhere to official safety advisories as the inclement weather persists.
Dubai Police have foiled a major drug smuggling attempt, seizing narcotics valued at more than Rs340 million and arresting three suspects in a high-level anti-narcotics operation.
Officials said the operation, codenamed “Toxic Buttons”, led to the arrest of two Arab nationals and one Asian.
Police confiscated 89,760 Captagon tablets, a banned stimulant, that had been cleverly concealed inside clothing buttons in an attempt to evade detection.
The drugs, with an estimated street value of AED4.48 million (approximately Rs340 million), were reportedly intended for smuggling into a neighbouring country.
Experts warn that Captagon, often referred to as the “poor man’s cocaine,” is a dangerous stimulant that temporarily boosts energy and alertness but causes long-term harm to the brain, heart, and nervous system.
- Atmosphere of “peace and stability” on Himalayan border: Modi.
- Xi Jinping, Modi seek united front against Western pressure.
- Meeting between Asian rivals comes after US tariffs on India.
TIANJIN: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said New Delhi is committed to improving ties with Beijing in a key meeting with China’s President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of a regional security forum.
Modi is in China for the first time in seven years to attend a two-day meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, along with Russian President Vladimir Putin and other leaders from Central, South and Southeast Asia and the Middle East in a show of Global South solidarity.
“We are committed to progressing our relations based on mutual respect, trust and sensitivities,” Modi told Xi during the meeting on Sunday, according to a video clip posted on the Indian leader’s official X account.
The bilateral meeting took place five days after Washington imposed punishing 50% tariffs on Indian goods due to New Delhi’s purchases of Russian oil. Analysts say Xi and Modi are looking to present a united front against Western pressure.
Modi said an atmosphere of “peace and stability” has been created on their disputed Himalayan border, the site of a prolonged military standoff after deadly troop clashes in 2020, which froze most areas of cooperation between the nuclear-armed strategic rivals.
He added that an agreement had been reached between both nations regarding border management, without giving details.
Both leaders had a breakthrough meeting in Russia last year after reaching a border patrol agreement, setting off a tentative thaw in ties that has accelerated in recent weeks as New Delhi seeks to hedge against renewed tariff threats from Washington.
Direct flights between both nations, which have been suspended since 2020, are “being resumed”, Modi added, without providing a timeframe.
China had agreed to lift export curbs on rare earths, fertilisers and tunnel boring machines this month during a key visit to India by China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
China opposes Washington’s steep tariffs on India and will “firmly stand with India,” Chinese Ambassador to India Xu Feihong said this month.
For decades, Washington painstakingly cultivated ties with New Delhi in the hope that it would act as a regional counterweight to Beijing.
In recent months, China has allowed Indian pilgrims to visit Buddhist sites in Tibet, and both countries have lifted reciprocal tourist visa restrictions.
“Both India and China are engaged in what is likely to be a lengthy and fraught process of defining a new equilibrium in the relationship,” said Manoj Kewalramani, a Sino-Indian relations expert at the Takshashila Institution think tank in Bengaluru.
Big Tech Companies in the US Have Been Told Not to Apply the Digital Services Act
Prince William, Kate Middleton share emotional message
Prince William’s take on King Charles peace talks come to light
-
Tech4 days agoReview: Google Pixel 10 Series
-
Sports4 days agoNew Zealand rugby player Shane Christie, who suffered multiple concussions, dies aged 39 – SUCH TV
-
Tech3 days agoTop CDC Officials Resign After Director Is Pushed Out
-
Fashion4 days agoPortugal Jewels Chiado boutique nominated for two global design awards
-
Fashion4 days agoICE cotton futures fall for 2nd consecutive day on strong crop outlook
-
Fashion4 days agoIsrael’s Delta Galil posts $470 mn Q2 sales, updates 2025 guidance
-
Sports4 days agoNew-look Pac-12 extends CW deal through 2031
-
Sports3 days agoDolphins GM Chris Grier says fans threatened his family in string of vile emails after team’s lackluster year