A Leeds property developer, thought to be a gangland money launderer, surrendered £10m worth of property after a huge National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation. Mansoor Mahmood 'Manni' Hussain is believed to have laundered money for gangsters, using his property empire - with a portfolio across West Yorkshire, Cheshire and London.
The NCA believes that Mr Hussain has acted for gangsters - including a drug trafficker and a murderer - in a career spanning two decades. Investigators said that they have information linking Mr Hussain to underworld criminals, but have been unable to acquire the evidence that they would require for a conviction.
One of Mr Hussain's closest associates, according to the NCA, was Bradford gangster Mohammed Nisar Khan, known on the street as 'Meggy'. In 2019, he was jailed for life after a "ruthless and barbaric" attack on a father-of-three.
Khan purposely drove a car into 40-year-old Amriz Iqbal, as he walked along Bradford Moor with a friend. Mr Iqbal died from his injuries in hospital, while his friend survived.
Investigators from the NCA have long-considered Khan one of the most significant organised crime bosses in northern England, as he was known to be involved in drug and firearms trafficking operations, the BBC reports.
As for Mr Hussain, in 2019, the NCA were able to use an Unexplained Wealth Order (UWO) to seize property from him that they believed had been acquired illegally. UWOs allow law enforcement agencies to confiscate criminal assets, without having to prove that the assets were actually obtained via criminal activity.
In the case of Mr Hussain, he was required to show investigators that his wealth had come from legitimate sources. But, in October 2020, the NCA announced that Mr Hussain had chosen to stop fighting his case against them, choosing instead to agree a settlement - which included handing over £10m worth of his properties.
This amounted to most of Mr Hussain's property empire, including 45 of his apartments, offices and homes. Within this empire was the brand Poundworld, which Mr Hussain had purchased after the chain initially went bust.
In a spectacular fall from grace, Mr Hussain - who had led a life of glitz and glamour, regularly posing for photographs with A-List celebs - was left with just four small properties. He was also permitted to keep some cash that was in a bank account not linked to the investigation.
The biggest property that Mr Hussain handed to the NCA, was a high-spec apartment and office development on the outskirts of Leeds. The property, called Cubic, was owned entirely by Mr Hussain.
Mr Hussain also owned myriad other properties across the country, including London and Bradford. In fact, most of Mr Hussain's properties were in the Leeds and Bradford area, with a small selection of other properties in wealthy areas of London and Cheshire.
The NCA said that they could not find any "legitimate source" for Mr Hussain's wealth, which led them to believe that it had all come from his criminal associates. But it was not just gangsters that Mr Hussain rubbed shoulders with, as his social media accounts show him pictured with high-profile celebs, including Meghan Markle and Beyonce.
His social media profiles also showed Mr Hussain enjoying luxurious goods, such as expensive cars, jets and super yachts. He would also regularly attend 'VIP' events, bumping into celebs such as Nicole Scherzinger and Simon Cowell.
There has been no suggestion that any of the celebrities Mr Hussain met knew who he was - or what he did for a living. But Mr Hussain, keen to present himself as wealthy and worthy of fame, drew the attention of West Yorkshire Police who, in turn, alerted the NCA.
A two-year investigation into Mr Hussain's finances followed, culminating in the presentation of the UWO. Unexplained Wealth Orders are also known as "McMafia Orders" and were first used in 2018. The NCA said that Mr Hussain had been left with "virtually nothing" after their investigation, except heavily mortgages properties
Read more:
Police lockdown Leeds street and swarm Vintage Cash Cow after shop is sent a grenade in the post
Former BBC Radio Leeds DJ Alex Belfield appeals sentence for stalking Jeremy Vine
Third David Oluwale plaque to be unveiled on Leeds Bridge after racist vandals tore down first two
Gang jailed for gun deal after litter picker finds firearm in Leeds street
