Mohammed Kattany (37), director of Unique Hairdressers in Bramhall, and Ahmed Al-Salaima (33), owner of Snipz hairdresser in Withington, have been jailed for allegedly smuggling more than 2.5 tons of tobacco into Britain, in a tax fraud of £450,000.
The men from manchester were arrested in July 2013, after HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) investigators associated them with many seizures of illegal tobacco at Manchester airport, Heathrow airport and the Port of Felixstowe by UK Border Force.
It is said that Mohammed Kattany had allegedly hidden smuggled fruit-flavoured tobacco in freight imports from Dubai, postal parcels and his own luggage. Ahmed Al-Salaima is said to be his accomplice.
The pair received two years imprisonment at Manchester Crown Court for tax evasion on the tobacco products, on Friday 22nd January 2016.
Sandra Smith, Assistant Director, Fraud Investigation, HMRC said, “These determined smugglers used flimsy excuses to blame others for the hidden tobacco but all the evidence led directly to them. Nearly three tons of illegal tobacco were intercepted before making it to the street of Manchester thanks to the joint work of HMRC and BF [Border Force]. This was a serious attempt to steal hundreds of thousand of pounds from the public purse and undermine local businesses.”
