Surveyor and property developer given sentences of seven and 13 years for their part in a £49m mortgage fraud

<p>Surveyor Ian McGarry and property developer Saghir Afzal were sentenced at Southwark Crown Court yesterday (14 June) to prison terms of seven and 13 years respectively for their part in a £49m mortgage fraud.<br />The sentencing followed an SFO decision to drop a retrial into three accused solicitors, Fatema Patwa, Kamran Malik and Laurence Ferrigan, who the jury could not agree a verdict on. The proescution said a further trial was "not in the public interest". All had pleaded not guilty.<br />Three other defendants, Hardeep Sodhi, Mark Knights and Simon Lawrence, who also pleaded not guilty, were acquitted last month.<br />Investigations undertaken by the Serious Fraud Office into six property transactions found the real combined value of the properties was £6m, prosecuting QC Andrew Ballie said.<br />SFO director Richard Alderman said: "I am pleased with the result, the principal defendants have received hefty sentences, which reflect the seriousness of the offences."<br />The prosecution said that the first count related to a transaction that took place in 2004 on Concentric Works in Priory Road, Aston, secured using a £10.5m mortgage from Cheshire Building Society, the court was told.<br />The second count concerned a former US air force base, Tattersett Business Park in Norfolk. The deal was completed using a £9.1m loan from Societe Generale, based on a fraudulent valuation of £16m by Mr McGarry.<br />The third count related to a property in Alma Street, Smethwick. It was purchased with borrowings of £1.75m from the Bank of Ireland, based on McGarry's valuation. In 2007, it was repossessed by the Bank of Ireland and sold for £100,000.<br />The fourth count related to Saltley Industrial Estate in Birmingham. It was bought in November 2005 for £6m before being sold for £8m using a £6.4m loan from Nationwide. It was repossessed in June 2007 and sold for £650,000.<br />The fifth count involved obtaining £14m from Nationwide to buy St Ivel Works in Carmarthen and the sixth involved the BIP offices, which were sold for £588,000 in January 2006 and, the next month, sold for £7m, using a £6.15m mortgage from Nationwide</p><p> </p>

Surveyor and property developer given sentences of seven and 13 years for their part in a £49m mortgage fraud

Surveyor Ian McGarry and property developer Saghir Afzal were sentenced at Southwark Crown Court yesterday (14 June) to prison terms of seve...

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