Birmingham cash courier smuggled £9.04million to Dubai in 24 cases in 'breathtaking' huge operation

A money laundering network led by Dubai-based Abdullah Alfalasi smuggled more than £100 million out of the UK to the UAE.

The network made 83 separate trips during November 2019 and October 2020 before their crimes were uncovered during an investigation by the National Crime Agency (NCA).

Alfalasi, aged 48, was jailed for more than nine years in July 2022. And on Friday the NCA told how six more members of his network were sentenced, including Birmingham woman Paige Henry, aged 26.

The network collected cash from criminal groups around the UK, which was mainly the profits of drug dealing, and took it to counting houses that were rented apartments in Central London.

The money was then vacuum packed and separated into suitcases, which would typically each contain around £500,000. They were sprayed with coffee or air fresheners in an effort to prevent them being found by sniffer dogs.

The couriers, who were paid between £3,000-5,000 for each trip and would be booked on business class flights due to the extra luggage allowance, communicated on WhatsApp groups including one titled ’Sunshine and lollipops’.

Henry made four trips to Dubai in August and September 2020, one alone and three with other couriers, carrying a total of 24 suitcases containing £9.05 million. The NCA said that Henry was sentenced to two years imprisonment suspended for two years on March 15.

The network also included Beatrice Auty from London who was charged with attempting to remove criminal property from England and Wales. She was caught on camera removing cash from boxes and was sentenced to 42 months imprisonment on July 12 last year.

‘The world’s most dangerous organised criminals cannot operate effectively without them’

Adrian Searle, Director of the National Economic Crime Centre in the NCA, said: “Money laundering fuels the global drugs trade, human trafficking, fraud, ransomware and many other crimes that cause misery and ruin lives. Today is an important step in removing one transnational criminal gang responsible for laundering at least £100 million.

“Gangs such as this smuggle cash on behalf of international controller networks – apex criminals who deploy sophisticated techniques to move and conceal the proceeds of crime in eye watering volumes and, sometimes, at the click of a button. The world’s most dangerous organised criminals and corrupt elites cannot operate effectively without them.

“With 17 people sentenced, this case highlights the scale and level of organisation money launderers will deploy to commit their crimes. The NCA is committed to targeting these gangs and working with our partners across the globe to reduce the threat from all forms of illicit finance.”

‘Breathtaking scale’

NCA senior investigating officer Ian Truby said: “This was cash smuggling on a breathtaking scale. Although many of the couriers regarded these trips as paid for adventures in the sun, the stark reality is that this cash was generated from real-world harm.

“Profits are often re-invested into criminal activities such as drug trafficking, which fuels violence and insecurity in the UK and across the world. This case, one of the largest of its kind ever investigated by the NCA, demonstrates our commitment to targeting the criminal networks involved in international money laundering.