Essex man jailed for money laundering

AN ESSEX man has been sentenced to five years and eight months in jail for money laundering.

Avtar Singh Mann, 50, who was the director of the cash and carry warehouse Glenn & Co (Essex) Ltd at Barking was handed the jail term on Friday (26) after a four-month trial at London’s Southwark Crown Court.

Two others - Mandeep Singh Dhillon and Santokh Singh Bharj - who were also involved in the racket - were sentenced to jail on October 6.

Bharj, 54, was employed by Mann, while Dhillon, 40, ran Gardner Shaw C&C Ltd on Thames Road.

Investigators revealed that the shell companies, which claimed to be legitimate alcohol trading businesses, had no facilities to store alcohol and were fronted by people with no experience of the trade.

Internet Protocol (IP) addresses used to control the shell companies’ bank accounts were traced to several locations, including Mann’s company premises and the home addresses of Bharj and Dhillon.

More than £198,000 and €26,000 was found at Mann’s home in Loughton and £329,000 at Dhillon’s family home in Chislehurst.

Bharj was jailed for seven years and three months, while Dhillon was sentenced to four years of imprisonment.

Two other men - Thinh Van Dinh of London and Inderjit Paul of Dudley - who were directors of shell companies received suspended jail terms after they pleaded guilty to money laundering.