A fugitive British crime boss once dubbed “Don Car-leone” is facing the seizure of £3.5 million after a judge dismissed his claims he made his money from trading gold bullion.
Alexander Surin, who earned his nickname because of his luxury car fleet, held millions of Bitcoin in an African account. However, High Court judge Mr Justice Mould has granted the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) the right to seize it after deciding it was laundered money from “illegal drug trafficking”.
Surin, who has already been made to surrender three Ferraris, a Rolls-Royce and money from the sale of a Bugatti Veyron to the National Crime Agency (NCA) as the proceeds of crime, opened his cryptocurrency account with a company called Coinbase Kenya.
He has claimed the Bitcoin in it was earned lawfully from two sales in Dubai’s gold souk, in deals with a trader operating out of “small rooms in shops or buildings” who has no website or bookkeeping records and conducts his business on the basis of “trust and reputation”.
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But Martin Evans KC, for the CPS, told the High Court there was “compelling” evidence the money was made through drug dealing and money laundering.
He said two “large transfers” into the Coinbase Kenya account were made from Christian Hargreaves, who was later jailed in the UK for 17 years for conspiracy to supply class A drugs, during the period covered by the conviction.
‘No evidence showing criminality’
Mr Evans said the fact that Surin and Hargreaves were British created the “sufficient connection to England and Wales” required by proceeds of crime legislation for seizure of the cryptocurrency in the African account.
In response, Surin, who is believed to be living in Dubai, claimed in email correspondence that there was “no evidence to show my involvement in any criminality to suggest that the bitcoins were the proceeds of crime”.
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Mr Evans told the court that apart from two fake invoices, Surin had provided no records to explain how he had become so wealthy after having previous assets seized.
In 2015, after Surin’s conviction in France for drug trafficking, the NCA brought a High Court action which resulted in him being made to hand over the cars and other assets including four London homes.
Mr Justice Mould said: “The evidence advanced by the [CPS], that in each case those transactions were made by Hargreaves with the knowledge of the defendant with a view to laundering money derived from illegal drug trafficking, is compelling.
“[Surin’s] alternative explanation, that each was a legitimate gold bullion sale to Panache Jewels LLC, lacks any credibility in the face of the [CPS’s] evidence.”
In 2015, Surin, whose original name was Michael Boparan, and his wife accepted that £4.5 million of assets seized from them by the NCA were acquired through crime.
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The assets included three Ferraris, a Rolls-Royce and the profits from the sale of a Bugatti Veyron as well as flat in St John’s Wood, money from the sale of three other London homes and two houses in Kent.
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