A luxury penthouse apartment and a Porsche with a combined value of over £800,000 have been recovered following a National Crime Agency investigation.
The NCA probe followed a referral from West Yorkshire Police, and drew on evidence that linked convicted murderer Mohammed Nisar ‘Meggy’ Khan to Mansoor Hussain – the respondent in the first successful Unexplained Wealth Order case.
Last week at the High Court Mrs Justice Stewart granted an order to recover the luxury apartment on an exclusive development in Huddersfield, which the NCA claimed was owned by Khan, who was convicted in May 2019 of the murder of Amriz Iqbal.
The NCA claimed Meggy Khan was the head of an organised crime group involved in drug supply, firearms offences and violence across West Yorkshire.
This latest result follows a previous High Court order issued by Mr Justice Thornett on 6 February 2020, where the NCA recovered Khan’s Porsche Cayenne which bore the registration ’MEG5S’.
NCA investigators established that despite the apartment and the car being registered to companies seemingly unconnected to Khan, he used both for a number of years prior to their recovery. Indeed Khan was living at the apartment with his wife and children at the time of his arrest for murder.
The NCA successfully argued that despite the measures taken by Khan to hide ownership, they were both obtained through crime. The funds used to secure the purchase of the apartment were provided by Leeds based businessman, and respondent in the UK’s first successful Unexplained Wealth Order case, Mansoor Hussain.
Khan took significant steps to hide his ownership of the Porsche by registering it in the name of a company formerly owned by his nephew.
Meggy Khan has a long criminal history and has been linked to a number of high profile court cases in the Leeds and Bradford area. Between 1993 and 2011 he was convicted of offences including robbery, possession of firearms, perverting the course of justice, theft, handling stolen goods, and assault.
Andy Lewis, Head of Asset Denial in the National Crime Agency, said:
“The use of civil powers allowed us to recover the assets of convicted murderer Meggy Khan, who we believe was head of an organised crime group responsible for drug crime and violent offences across West Yorkshire.
“Taking away the proceeds of crime is a vital tactic in the fight against organised crime, as it weakens a criminal’s ability to fund further illegal activity, as well as preventing them from living a luxury lifestyle.”
Sarah Pritchard, NCA Director of the National Economic Crime Centre, said:
“Recovering illicit wealth is key to disrupting serious and organised criminality and reducing its harmful impact in communities. We are determined to stop criminals profiting from their crime – this case shows that we will use all tools at our disposal to take action to recover illicit wealth.”
Detective Chief Superintendent Pat Twiggs, of West Yorkshire Police, said: “Through Programme Precision we are working closely with the National Crime Agency and other partners to tackle the threat of serious and organised crime.
“This order is a reflection of how, by working in partnership, we can make a significant impact in the communities of West Yorkshire and beyond.
“Mohammed Nisar ‘Meggy’ Khan was sentenced in 2019 to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 26 years, but that didn’t mean our work against him came to an end. As this order shows we and our partners will stop at nothing to ensure people who are involved in serious criminality in West Yorkshire are held accountable for their actions.”
Programme Precision sees West Yorkshire Police, partner organisations and the wider public working together to tackle serious and organised crime in the county.