Men jailed for money laundering after police find £109,000 in cash in Portsmouth

Alidon Sadikaj, Patrick Tsang and Shaukat Khan pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transfer criminal property, mainly cash.

It comes after the trio were caught by officers in Hollam Road, Milton, Portsmouth, last May with large sums of money.

Police found £89,000 in a box in a car owned by fourth defendant Marcel Daci along with £9,000 in a McDonald’s paper bag. Khan was found with £11,000 cash.

The four men had been on trial at Portsmouth Crown Court after pleading not guilty to conspiracy to supply a class A drug.

But the Crown Prosecution Service later accepted their guilty pleas to conspiracy to transfer criminal property after they offered no evidence on the drug charge.

During sentencing yesterday judge David Melville QC said: ‘On May 12, 2016 police observed Mr Tsang in his house on Hollam Road where the three other defendants arrived. Shortly after 5pm, a man was seen to leave the property carrying what police believed to be drugs.

‘Mr Sadikaj left with a cardboard box with £89,000 and put it in Mr Daci’s car. Another figure of £9,000 was found in the car as well.’

Judge Melville added: ‘The fact this was a conspiracy is a significant feature because each conspirator gives help to the others knowing he is doing so.

‘In this case, help is clearly seen in the telephone contact between three conspirators in relation to their movements.’

Tsang, 44, of Hollam Road, was jailed for 18 months. The court heard he was jailed in 2005 for 12 years for supplying cocaine and was on licence last May.

Dominic Thomas, mitigating, said Tsang accepted responsibility for £11,000. He said: ‘His property was used for a meeting of these conspirators and he has admitted responsibility for a low figure, around one tenth of the sum. His role in this conspiracy is less than the others.’

Sadikaj, 35, of Cherry Blossom, Palmers Green, London, was also sentenced to 18 months in prison.

Defending, Christopher Meredith said: ‘The defendant is responsible for £44,500.

‘He was not the architect of this conspiracy and it is plain there are others higher up the chain.’

Khan, 39, of Summerwood Road, Isleworth, was jailed for 18 months after admitting responsibility for £44,500. Anu Mohindru said Khan had learnt his lesson.

Daci, 38, of Newark Crescent, London, had no previous convictions and was given a nine-month jail sentence suspended for two years. He was ordered to complete 100 hours of unpaid work.

Martin McCarthy, in mitigation, said Daci acted ‘out of character’ when he was asked to collect cash and was unaware of the underlying circumstances.