Two solicitors have been charged in connection with a series of high value commercial mortgage frauds.
Mark Knights of Cheshire and Kamran Malik of Birmingham have today appeared at City of London Magistrates Court charged with three counts of obtaining a money transfer by deception contrary to section 15A Theft Act 1968.
The proceedings follow an earlier investigation where six individuals were charged in connection with the same offences.
It is alleged that the defendants participated in a series of frauds where they dishonestly obtained loans from banks or building societies that were secured on six commercial investment properties.
Each property was then transferred between companies controlled by one of the defendants and his associates at highly inflated prices in a series of back to back transactions.
On the basis of the grossly inflated prices, fraudulent valuations and forged leases, the defendants applied for and obtained mortgage advances totalling nearly £50m. The mortgages were quickly defaulted on and the lenders suffered significant losses.
At the time of the offence Mark Knights was employed at Mace & Jones Solicitors in Manchester and Kamran Malik was a partner in A & H Solicitors in Birmingham. Neither of the defendents are currently working at their former employers.
The proceedings are to be transferred to Southwark Crown Court.
