A UAE-registered company, GLORY LINE GOODS WHOLESALERS CO L.L.C, has agreed to forfeit £17.5 million following an NCA civil recovery investigation.
The company, owned by Indian National Sankar Velu, had received over CNH 200,000,000 (£20.5 million) from a Hong Kong registered customer, which it argued was for a significant consignment of plastic.
The Agency suspects that this sum represents the proceeds of trade based money laundering.
In September 2023, concerns were raised about the amount of money moving through the company account – and a later review revealed that two auditors’ reports, provided to a UK based Authorised Payment Institution, were fraudulent.
The NCA obtained an Account Freezing Order in November 2023.
Substantial material, including invoices and payment details, were provided by GLORY LINE to justify the transactions on the account – but many contained significant inaccuracies and inconsistencies.
The company also failed to provide a number of crucial documents, including a full copy of the company’s bank statements, quotations for products or negotiations over price, and information relating to Velu’s original purchase of the firm.
Sankar Velu has denied engaging in criminal activity, and Westminster Magistrates’ Court has made no finding in that regard. The Consent Order does not represent a criminal finding of, or an admission of, guilt.
Rob Burgess, Head of Asset Denial at the NCA, said:
“The Agency deploys all powers available to identify, pursue and recover the proceeds of crime, even if the criminality in question took place overseas.
“In this case, NCA officers worked tirelessly to comb through complex documents, securing a significant settlement and demonstrating our commitment to carefully scrutinising money that flows into or through the UK, including via UK-regulated companies.”
21 May 2025
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