Jail for money laundering bar worker with fake driving licences and passport (20 August 2015)

Council officers who visited a shisha bar in Huddersfield to check smoking regulations uncovered fake documents, including fake driving licences, which were being used to launder money.

Local publisher The Examiner reports that environmental officer from Kirklees Council in West Yorkshire paid a visit to the Arabian Lounge Shisha bar in the town centre, where they found Abdul Farooq in charge.

Police officers searched the premises and found £1,386 in cash in a wallet which had fallen from a cupboard – and which Farooq said was his.

Officers also found a file containing paperwork which appeared to be driving licences in Farooq’s name, but with different dates of birth – along with a DVLA driving instructor licence, also in his name.

Further inquiries revealed Farooq had applied for with a passport in the name of Mehtab Khan, with a date of birth 24 November, 1959 – which he had been issued with in 2006.

The passport was used in June, 2006 to obtain a provisional driving licence in Khan’s name. The licence was replaced with a full driving licence after a test was taken.

After this, Farooq had applied to change the licence to his own name, supporting the application with a deed poll showing a name change.

However, he had tried to change the date of birth from 1959 to 1974 and suspicions were raised, with checks revealing other documents were involved in the deception.

The court heard that accounts had gone through “illegal acts” – and since 2009, a total of £172,000 had gone through Farooq’s accounts and £65,500 had also gone through his wife’s account, which would be the subject of future proceeds of crime applications.

Farooq had also been served with a deportation notice, the court heard.

Farooq’s defence lawyer told the court the documents were not required for immigration purposes – but for economic reasons to allow him to work.

“It was not as sophisticated as you may think,” the court was told.

“From the way he tried to change the date of birth back to his own, [it] was bound to raise alarm bells.”

The court was told Farooq was “was working at the bar in an honest way” when arrested – and inquiries would show genuine income had been paid into the accounts, but he accepted others had used them as well.

“He is extremely anxious for his wife and how she will cope.”

The court was told Farooq’s wife was claiming disability benefits, although she was working the hours she was allowed to.

Farooq, 41 of Sullivan Close, Crossland Moor in Huddersfield admitted making an untrue statement to obtain a passport, four offences of fraud and concealing the proceeds of criminal conduct.

Jailing him for a total of three years, Recorder Ray Singh told the court that inquiries showed Farooq had applied for at least two driving licences in false details and a passport.

He added that the deception “might have more sinister motives” – but more likely it was to do with Farooq’s “dubious immigration status” and to enable him to get work.

“Immigration authorities have a difficult time in normal circumstances trying to trace nationals in this country, trying to ensure they can deport those they need to and false identities thwarts that,” he told the court.

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