Leeds man caught running illegal wire transfer business for Iraqis

A man who ran an unlicensed business charging clients 50p to transfer cash to families in Iraq has been given a suspended prison sentence.

By The Newsroom

Published 27th Jan 2016, 12:08 BST

Updated 27th Jan 2016, 13:09 BST

Sherzad Hassan Kadir, of Lovell Park Towers, Little London, Leeds, admitted money laundering charges after being caught for a second time by HM Revenue and Customs.

Kadir, 29, had been fined in 2010 after he was found to have no customer records and had failed to register as a Money Services Business.

Despite claiming he had ceased trading, he continued to wire payments to Iraq, sending £22,175 between 2011 and 2013.

Kadir was sentenced to nine months in prison, suspended for two years, and 250 hours of unpaid work at Leeds Crown Court.

Jo Tyler, assistant director of fraud investigation at HMRC, said: “These regulations exist to prevent criminally obtained money from being laundered outside the UK – abiding by the rules is not an option.”