In a landmark case, sixteen individuals connected to a West London-based organized crime group (OCG) have been sentenced to a total of more than 70 years in jail following an extensive investigation by the National Crime Agency (NCA). The operation, which involved international money laundering and people smuggling, uncovered the group’s involvement in smuggling an estimated £70 million in cash out of the UK.
The convicted individuals include Charan Singh, Valjeet Singh, Swander Dhal, Amarjeet Alabadis, Diljan Malhotra, Jackdar Kapoor, Jaginder Singh Kapoor, Jasbeer Malhotra, Jasbir Dhal, Jasbir Kapoor, Joe Round, Louise Smith, Manmon Kapur, Mircea Denes, Pinky Kapur, and Sundar Vengadassalam.
The NCA’s investigation revealed that this vast sum of money was likely the proceeds from the sale of class A drugs and organised immigration crime. While approximately £1.5 million was seized from couriers attempting to leave the UK, meticulous analysis of flight records, cash declarations in Dubai, and other evidence indicated that the OCG had successfully transported significantly more money out of the country.
In a shocking turn of events, the investigation also exposed a plot by OCG members to smuggle 17 migrants, including five children and a pregnant woman, into the UK. The migrants were hidden in the back of a van carrying tires in 2019. Fortunately, Dutch police, collaborating with the NCA, intercepted the van before it could reach a ferry at the Hook of Holland.
The culmination of this extensive operation occurred in November 2019 when NCA officers arrested the gang’s ringleader, Charan Singh, among others, during a series of early morning raids across West London. Singh, who previously resided in the UAE, was found to have financed flights to Dubai for other network members to facilitate cash transportation. A ledger maintained by Singh detailed the frequency and amounts of cash transported, revealing at least 58 trips to Dubai in 2017 alone.
Following subsequent arrests and two trials at Croydon Crown Court, the first trial, concluding in April, resulted in six individuals, including Charan Singh, being found guilty of money laundering offences. Two defendants faced additional convictions for facilitating illegal immigration.
In the midst of the second trial, which began in April, six defendants changed their pleas to guilty regarding money laundering charges. The culmination of this legal process occurred on September 15, 2023, with Charan Singh receiving a 12-and-a-half-year prison sentence. Valjeet Singh was sentenced to 11 years, and Swander Singh Dhal received 10 years for money laundering and an additional five years for people smuggling. The remaining 15 members of the OCG were handed sentences ranging from nine years to 11 months.
Proceedings under the Proceeds of Crime Act are set to commence, aiming to identify and seize assets acquired as a result of the gang’s criminal activities.
NCA’s Senior Investigating Officer, Chris Hill, stated, “Charan Singh and his network thought they were untouchable, moving tens of millions of pounds of criminal cash out of the UK. The NCA mounted a long and complex investigation into their activities, and over a two-year period, we were able to evidence their involvement in money laundering and organised immigration crime.”
He continued, “The sentences handed down today mark the culmination of that investigation and years of work by our officers. We remain determined to protect the public and target criminal networks operated by those like Charan Singh, and we will use the full range of tactics at our disposal to disrupt and dismantle them.
