British investigators are investigating a multimillion-dollar money laundering through Dubai. In Britain, it is believed that this Arab Emirate has become the new “Costa del Craim“-a haven for British criminals.
“Costa del Craim”is the informal name of the region on the coast of Spain Costa del Sol, where British lawbreakers traditionally hid from the justice of Albion. Relations between the countries had been difficult because of the disputed status of Gibraltar. Until 2001, there was no extradition law.
According to British investigators, the place of the “Costa del Craim” is now occupied by Dubai. Fraudsters, because of which the Treasury of Britain missed almost 100 million pounds, allegedly bought a number of luxury apartments in Dubai. This is the conclusion investigators came, after examining the documents of the secret base of data about the property in Dubai, says the Guardian.
The list of buyers will be carefully studied by British investigators who are chasing scammers who have disappeared along with millions from the UK and other European countries. All suspects are accused of being involved in the so-called “carousel” fraud, the damage from which in the period from 2005 to 2016 is 16.5 billion pounds in the form of tax revenues.
Expert opinion
Rod stone, a former assistant Director of Her Majesty’s Office’s national coordination group on taxes and customs duties, said the crooks started shipping goods through Dubai in 2005, trying to avoid paying taxes.
“The criminals used Dubai’s banks to avoid stringent anti – money laundering reporting requirements in the UK, as well as the authorities’ ability to freeze the fraudsters ‘ assets,” stone said. “Many professionals believe that Dubai has replaced the Costa del Craim in Spain, as criminals hide their whereabouts and invest.”
Fraud scheme
“Carousel fraud” is the following chain: the British business imports valuable goods without VAT and sells them to the British company with added VAT. The import company charges VAT, but does not pay it to the Treasury . The product is re-sold several times through the chain of “buffer” companies. In the final transaction, the company pays VAT to the Treasury, while the first and last companies in the chain disappear, fraudulently providing VAT that has never actually been paid.
One of the suspects is Mustafa al-Hassani, his business of wholesale mobile phones Abyss International operated in Dubai and London. A 47-year-old man who has a passion for expensive cars, and whose company is part of a chain that owes huge sums to Her Majesty’s Office of taxes and customs duties. This company bought eight previously unknown objects in Dubai worth more than 2.5 million pounds.
Hasani’s younger brother, Haider, from whom the British Department was trying to obtain millions of pounds of damage, also bought property in Dubai.
Another alleged fraudster, who was accused of using companies in the UK and The British virgin Islands, cheated Britain, owns at least three properties in Dubai.
