Crime gold sold at auction

More than €730,000 worth of gold smuggled into Britain by criminals has been sold at a Belfast auction.

The precious metal was seized during a probe by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) into a £9m (€12.5m) smuggling plot that saw the gang’s leader, Chaudry Ali of Middlesex, jailed for nine years in 2012.

He was ordered to pay back £4.3m of his criminal profits or serve an extra 10 years in prison when he appeared at Kingston Crown Court a year ago.

Mike Parkinson, assistant director of fraud investigation at HMRC, said the sale sent out a message that criminal assets would be pursued even after a conviction is secured.

“We will always look to reclaim illegal profits to bring them back into the UK economy,” Mr Parkinson said.

“If Mr Ali serves his 10 years in prison and does not pay back the assets that it is known he has got, we will still be chasing him for that money when he is released from prison.”

Almost 150 kilos of gold, estimated to be worth more than €3.5m, were smuggled into Britain by Ali’s criminal gang.

Mainly gold bars were sold during an online auction yesterday morning, netting £522,000 .

Another £500,000 was expected to be made during an auction of bracelets and other jewellery.

A total of £700,000 had already been realised beforehand.

Further action to recover the proceeds of crime is being taken by selling properties and land worth nearly £2m that is owned by Ali in both Birmingham and London.