Textile export business owner jailed after laundering £1.9 million

A man has been jailed for over four years after being found guilty of laundering £1.9 million through his UK-based business which exported textiles to West Africa.

Ahmed Ali Suleman, 63, was found guilty of entering into a money laundering arrangement and false accounting following a trial at Birmingham Crown Court.

Suleman laundered £1.9 million gained from a sophisticated romance fraud operation through his UK-based textile business, Savanna Rags.

Savanna Rags collected second-hand clothing for export to West Africa, but the company also served as a front to process fraudulent funds.

On Monday 23 June, he was sentenced to four years and three months’ imprisonment. Suleman was prosecuted by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) following an investigation by the National Crime Agency (NCA).

Tarryn McCaffrey, Specialist Prosecutor for the CPS, said: “Through this money laundering operation, Suleman provided a financial lifeline to romance fraudsters who preyed on vulnerable individuals.

“Suleman wasn’t just moving money – he was facilitating the continued exploitation of vulnerable people, causing devastating emotional and financial harm.

“We will be pursuing confiscation proceedings against the defendant to remove any available criminal benefits gained from this enterprise.”

Through this money laundering operation, Suleman provided a financial lifeline to romance fraudsters who preyed on vulnerable individuals.

Between January 2015 and November 2017, Suleman used his position within the textile industry to launder money for international fraudsters.

The people behind the romance fraud, believed to be based in West Africa, created multiple fake personas on dating websites to target victims.

The fraudsters would manipulate the victims into transferring huge sums of money for various fabricated emergencies. The investigation identified 77 victims of the fraud.

When victims were convinced to transfer money, the payments were directed through Suleman’s company.

When banks questioned suspicious transactions at Savanna Rags, Suleman doctored existing invoices to add victims’ names to make them appear as legitimate business customers.

Paul Boniface, NCA Operations Manager, commented: “Romance fraud is a particularly cruel and malicious crime that results in victims paying out devastating sums of money.

“NCA officers worked tirelessly for multiple years to identify and dismantle this network, breaking the link between overseas criminals and the UK public.

“By targeting those who provide a service to fraudsters, we can stop them profiting from the misery they cause.”