Tayside Men Jailed For "Cuckoo Smurfing" Money Laundering
A group of Tayside men - who have become the first in Scotland to be convicted of a major money laundering scam known as "cuckoo smurfing" - have been jailed for almost 10 years.
Shop-keeper Muhammed Hameed roped in his uncle Saleem Shikari and worker Shahid Aslam to hide almost ÂŁ700,000 of ill-gotten gains belonging to Scots gangsters.
The sophisticated scheme the trio were part of involves crime gangs replacing legitimate sums of cash - intended for transfer overseas - with "dirty" money.
They were snared as part of Operation Confab - a huge probe set-up to catch Hameed and his criminal associates.
When police swooped in 2013, the three were caught red-handed with a plastic bag stuffed with ÂŁ75,000 of banknotes at Hameed's flat in Dundee.
Hameed (32), Aslam (36) and Shikari (52) are now behind bars after the they each pled guilty at the High Court in Glasgow to a charge under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
Sheriff Johanna Johnston QC jailed Hameed for five and a half years for his part in the scheme.
She told him: "You became involved in a sophisticated scheme. A large amount of money over a relatively long period of time was laundered.
"This was done through a network of contacts who provided you with details of accounts.
"It also involved innocent third parties who unwittingly had their confidential bank details used and passed on to others."
Aslam and Shikari were each jailed for two years for their parts in the operation.
In 2013, police got a tip off that Hameed was involved in a large scale money laundering operation with international links.
The highly-complex crime is known as 'cuckoo smurfing'.
This involves gangsters effectively hiding "dirty money" away from the eyes of police and the authorities.
Prosecutor Steven Borthwick explained how the scam can work.
He told how an unsuspecting overseas customer would go to send funds to the UK to another innocent individual.
But, unknown to them, the person handling the transfer is linked to a money laundering gang.
This individual - known as the "controller" - will then pass on account details to a UK crime mob.
The next step sees this gang replace the legitimate money with their ill-gotten gains - and the customer expecting the cash transfer is none the wiser.
The money originally deposited overseas is retained by the "controller".
He instead transfers these funds to "a cash pool account" often based in Dubai.
This is then used as an avenue to transfer money back to the UK gangsters.
Mr Borthwick added: "The criminal proceeds raised by the UK based crime gangs have thus been successfully laundered and the gang owes nothing but a commission to the 'controller' for his work.
"It is a sophisticated crime operated by a syndicate of highly organised crime gangs."
Police along with the National Crime Agency set up Operation Confab to target Hameed and his associates.
This involved Hameed being kept under close watch for a number of months in 2013.
The court heard how the shopkeeper along with Shikari and Aslam were clocked making "multiple cash deposits" at various banks in Dundee.
Mr Borthwick said this was on "a regular, almost daily basis" often involving "significant sums of money".
The prosecutor went on: "The deposits were made to the accounts of individuals - and sometimes companies - who had no personal or other connection to any of the accused."
Detectives eventually decided to make their move on August 27 2013.
This was after Hameed was spotted collecting a suspicious plastic bag near to his Dundee home.
Within minutes, police burst into the flat and found the trio - along with two other men - inside.
The bag Hameed had been clutching contained ÂŁ75,150 in mixed banknotes.
Officers also discovered a cash counting machine, as well as details of various bank accounts and pay-in slips.
The ÂŁ75,000 seized was "dirty money" belonging to an unknown Scots-based crime group.
Mr Borthwick told the court it was "clear" this cash was to be laundered as part of "cuckoo smurfing".
Hameed, Shikari, of Dundee, and Aslam, of Kirkcaldy, were held as police continued to build a watertight case against the three.
This involved contacting the innocent people - mainly based across England - whose accounts had been used by the criminals.
Mr Borthwick said: "All the witnesses stated that they were expecting money to be transferred from friends, family or partners in Iran, Pakistan and Dubai.
"None of the witnesses had any knowledge of the accused."
Detectives also built up "financial profiles" of the trio.
The advocate depute went on: "As a result of this analysis, no legitimate source for the funds deposited by them could be established."
The court also heard that each of their mobile phones contained details of names, bank accounts and sort codes.
They also disclosed frequent calls and texts exchanged with individuals in Pakistan and elsewhere overseas.
This involved "instructions" to deposit sums of money into certain accounts as part of the "cuckoo smurfing' scam".
The court was told a total of ÂŁ672,382 was effectively laundered on behalf of Scots crime mobs.
Mr Borthwick said Hameed carried out an "organisational role" by depositing "very significant sums of money" into the accounts of unsuspecting people.
The other two played "lesser, although still significant" parts in the offence.
Hameed, Shikari and Aslam had originally gone to trial, but admitted their guilt during the case.
Co-accused Philip Reid (47), of Glasgow, also faced a Proceeds of Crime charge, but his not guilty plea was accepted.
The term "cuckoo smurfing" was used due the way the crime is carried out.
Cuckoo refers to the fact those involved pay sums of money into accounts of other unsuspecting individuals.
This is said to be in the same way a cuckoo will lay their eggs in the nests of other species of birds.
Smurfing refers to paying multiple amounts of cash into a variety of accounts.