Ashraf Khan

Ashraf has a wealth of experience in dealing with all aspects of fraud and asset tracing both in the UK and overseas, enabling him to give full support to businesses at times when getting the right advice as swiftly as possible may be crucial. He offers unrivalled experience in all aspects of fraud and international asset tracing.

An essential part of Ashraf’s work is confiscation. Ashraf has an in-depth working knowledge of confiscation proceedings and over the years successfully protected his client’s from draconian confiscation orders.

Ashraf offers clients highly specialised and dedicated representation at all levels of the criminal justice system. He has appeared in Courts throughout England and Wales in cases of the highest national profile because of his ability to provide his lay and professional clients with outstanding legal knowledge, clearly focused and timely advice, and robust and effective advocacy. He offers unrivalled experience and ability in the defence of a wide range of serious and complex criminal cases, including organised crime, serious violence, large scale drug trafficking, terrorism, blackmail, kidnapping, armed robbery.

Over the years Ashraf has built up a vast body of knowledge in relation to the use and interpretation of scientific evidence including DNA, facial mapping, firearms residue and cell-site analysis as well as the presentation and analysis of complex medical evidence.

Notable crime cases

R v GH & 18 Others

Large scale conspiracy to supply Class A controlled drugs.

R v KY & 18 Others (Operation Frank)

Large scale importation and supply of Class A controlled drugs.

R v MH & 18 Others (Operation Alamos)

Large scale importation and supply of Class A controlled drugs.

R v RW & 7 Others (Operation Penshurst)

Large scale importation and supply of Class A controlled drugs.

R v MW & 8 Others

Conspiracy to Import and Supply Class A drugs worth £6.6 million.

R v MS & 8 Others

Conspiracy to Supply Class A and Money Laundering.

R v PS & 11 Others

Large-scale conspiracy to facilitate illegal immigration from the UK into Canada.

R v MR & 6 Others

Client alleged to be part of a highly organised crime group facilitating illegal immigration from Bangladesh.

R v Imran Mahmood & 35 Others

Representing one of the main defendants in one of the largest drugs conspiracies prosecuted in the Midlands.

R v Donald James & 12 Others

Instructed to represent the defendant charged with evading duty on cigarettes on a substantial scale.

R v Roy Tomlinson & 18 Others (Operation Manifest)

Defending in large scale and highly organised drugs conspiracy involving organised crime group in Sheffield and Nottingham supplying drugs to North East of England. Defendant acquitted of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.

R v Shahnawaz & 8 Others

Defending one of the lead defendants in a multi-million drug trafficking case involving a sophisticated organised criminal group based in North East England.

R v John Watson & 8 Others

Representing one of the main defendants in this large scale drugs conspiracy involving millions of pounds of heroin. Defendant acquitted.

R v Olushola Oshingbade & 15 Others

Representing one of the defendants charged with conspiracy to facilitate sham marriages between British Nationals and nationals of an African origin for significant profit.

R v Paul Tucker & 35 Others (Operation Tartrate)

Representing one of the defendants charged with evading duty of cigarette importation on a substantial scale.

R v Patricia Williams & 7 Others

Representing lead defendant charged with conspiracy to facilitate illegal immigration on a large scale.

R v Nguyen & 23 Others

Client charged with supply of controlled drugs on commercial scale. Case also linked to a separate but linked murder trial.

R v Eames & Others

Defence counsel in large-scale conspiracy to import/export class A drugs and money laundering valued at over £80 million. Case stayed as a result of successful abuse of process application.

R v Riaz Bi & Others

Multiple rape, kidnapping, false imprisonment and assault.

Ashraf is a fraud defence specialist. He provides advice and representation in some of the largest and most complex fraud cases to come before the Courts in the country. He specialises in advising and representing corporate and individual clients across the full range of white collar criminal offences, business crime, and related regulatory proceedings.

Ashraf’s services are often called upon at the earliest stage of a fraud investigation to assist in active case management. Due to the sheer size of the fraud alleged and the volume of documents involved, he often works within a team of specialist lawyers and forensic accountants during the preparatory stages.

Ashraf has experience of a wide spectrum of the business crime or regulatory issues which can face companies or individuals, including criminal anti-competitive behaviour (cartels, insider dealing, market abuse, LIBOR and other foreign exchange rate), Fraud (including Revenue (VAT and excise/duty diversion), mortgage, carbon credit trading, banking/fraudulent trading, factoring, MTIC/Carousel, boiler room, land banking, money laundering and “Ponzi” schemes) and Intellectual property crime.

Notable fraud cases

R v MS & 8 Others (Operation Yates)

Multi million pound money laundering linked to major drugs trafficking conspiracy in North East England.

R v IR & 6 Others (Operation Lever)

Alleged multi million pound International Revenue Share Fraud on mobile phone industry.

R v RS

Tax fraud.

R v PS & 8 Others

Multi million pound conspiracy to defraud Banks.

R v TH & 4 Others (Operation Coil)

Defence of a mortgage broker charged with conspiracy to defraud lenders in excess of £1.6 million.

R v NK & 50 Others (Operation Thatcham)

Instructed to defend in a large-scale conspiracy to defraud Insurance companies.

R v LH & 15 Others (Operation Lollipop)

Defence of man accused of large-scale conspiracy to defraud insurance companies.

R v MS & 8 Others

Conspiracy to Supply Class A and Money Laundering.

R v BH & 18 Others (Operate Savate)

Instructed to represent the lead defendant, a com-pany director, in allegation of direct and indirect tax fraud within the construction industry. This case has been described at the largest construction fraud to be prosecuted to date.

R v PW & 7 Others (Operation Bamburgh)

Instructed to represent one of the main defend-ants in what has been described as the largest mortgage fraud to be prosecuted to date.

R v MD & 65 Others (Operation Nacho)

Instructed to represent one of the principal defend-ants. This case has been described as the largest ‘cash for crash’ fraud ever prosecuted in the country. The allegation involves a large-scale fraud on insurance companies through false/exaggerated accident and personal injury claims.

R v NC & 4 Others

Representing defendant charged with fraudulent trading on a substantial scale.

R v OR & 9 Others (Operation Enigma)

Client alleged to be part of a £200 million interna-tional money laundering crime syndicate.

R v TP & 6 Others

Trading Standards prosecution of organised crime group involved in large scale counterfeit goods fraud.

R v Andrew Dodds & 17 Others

Instructed to represent defendant charged with large-scale ‘cash for crash’ insurance fraud.

R v Maria Gunakasera & 5 Others

Represented one of the principal defendants (a profes-sional banker) charged with laundering the proceeds of her father’s cheat on the public revenue which ran into millions.

R v Michael Robinson & 17 Others (Operation Anerley)

Representing the lead defendant as leading junior in this multi-million pound mortgage fraud.

R v James Priestley & 4 Others

Representing defendant charged with £1 million money laundering. The source of the money alleged to by the proceeds of drug trafficking.

R v Michael Cooper & 6 Others

Representing lead defendant in a £100 million steel fraud.

R v John Howard & 15 Others (Operation Pompeii)

Representing one of the defendants in a multi-million pound mortgage fraud.

Ashraf is regularly instructed for the defence in the highest profile murder and manslaughter cases in the country. Most cases of this type have been long trials involving gang related executions or multiple defendants, conflicting or complex evidence and technical issues of, among others, causation, vulnerable defendants and anonymous witnesses. He accustomed to defending in homicide cases that have been complicated by additional issues, such as multi-handed cut-throat defences, unusually young defendants and/or victims, examination of young or otherwise vulnerable witnesses and anonymous witnesses, complex scientific evidence, e.g. causation, low copy DNA or disputed medical opinion.

Notable murder & manslaughter cases

R v CP & 9 Others

Gang related murder where prosecution offered no evidence against the client after legal argument 8 weeks into the trial.

R v JP & 10 Others (Operation Poppy)

Representing client alleged to be involved in gang-land violence and drug trafficking.

R v WC & 3 Others

Client facing allegation of murder of a man alleged to have abused young children.

R v Gordon Whitehouse

Defendant alleged to have beat to death elderly man during the course of a burglary. Defendant acquitted of Manslaughter.

R v Lee Woodier & 5 Others

aHigh profile murder in Middlesbrough involving gang violence. Client first on the indictment and acquitted of murder.

R v David Connors

Defending man who strangled his ex-girlfriend to death in a secluded woodland park in Birmingham during sexual intercourse. Case attracted significant local media attention.

R v Martin Hallahan & 5 Others

Murder of vulnerable adult by a gang of youths in the Birmingham area.

R v Sadar Sharif Mahmood & 5 Others

Successfully defended the only defendant charged with the honour killing of Benaz Mahmod.

R v Rennard Russell

Defendant acquitted after trial. Motive for the killing alleged to be over a drugs dispute.

R v Foad Kotchki & 8 Others

This was a gangland drugs case where competing factions engaged in violence against each other in order to gain control over the area of supply. The trial was prosecuted by QC and junior. Client (2nd on Indictment) was acquitted after a 10 week trial.

Regulatory law is also a key part of Ashraf’s practice. He is approved as a member of the de-fence panel at the Dubai International Finance Centre (DIFC) and the Qatar International Court and Dispute Resolution Centre (QICDR) where he advises and represents corporate bodies and individuals in relation to regulatory breaches or where he acts as a mediator in complex commercial disputes.

Ashraf has extensive experience in defending in cases where regulatory breaches are alleged by governing bodies of professional, organisations and/or businesses. Over the years, he has advised and represented clients being investigated and/or prosecuted by the following agencies: Charity Commission for England and Wales, Environment Agency (EA), Office of Fair Trading (OFT), Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), The Pensions Regulator, Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC), General Chiropractic Council (GCC), General Dental Council (GDC), General Medical Council (GMC), General Optical Council (GOC), General Osteopathic Council (GosC), General Pharmaceutical Council (GPC), Health Professions Council (HPC), Health and Safety Executive, Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence (CHRE), Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland (PSNI), Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain (RPSGB), The Law Society, General Social Care Council (GSCC), Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), Office of Rail Regulation (ORR), Ofcom – Independent regulator and competition authority for the UK communications industries, PhonepayPlus – regulator for phone-paid services in the UK, Ofgem – the Office of the Gas and Electricity Markets, Ofwat – the Water Services Regulation Authority, Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), Food Standards Agency, Forensic Science Regulator, Information Commissioner’s Office and the Police Complaints Authority, Press Complaints Commission (PCC).