Prosecutors say Bernie Eccleston's $10 million guarantee made 'no commercial sense'. PA
Prosecutors say Bernie Eccleston's $10 million guarantee made 'no commercial sense'. PA
Prosecutors say Bernie Eccleston's $10 million guarantee made 'no commercial sense'. PA
Prosecutors say Bernie Eccleston's $10 million guarantee made 'no commercial sense'. PA

Motor racing mogul Ecclestone drawn into UK money laundering case


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Formula One mogul Bernie Ecclestone put up millions of dollars to guarantee a series of gold transactions that made “no commercial sense”, prosecutors said at a trial into one of the UK’s biggest money laundering operations.

Mr Ecclestone provided a $10 million personal guarantee for a gold deal for James Stunt, his son-in-law at the time, prosecutors said, as they laid out an elaborate chain of transactions aimed at hiding the origin of bags of street cash.

In total, about £266m ($328m) was banked by NatWest and then laundered, prosecutors allege.

Mr Ecclestone is not a defendant in the case and has not been accused of any wrongdoing.

Mr Stunt is one of eight people standing trial over allegations of laundering cash from criminal activity.

Only a few branded bars were ever made, and no F1 gold coins were minted, said Nicholas Clarke, the lead prosecution lawyer.

“The involvement in these businesses made no commercial sense at all and appears to be vanity projects” for Mr Stunt, he said.

The financing arrangement, provided by Canada’s Bank of Nova Scotia was intended to help in paying for branded gold bars and coins.

Instead, the money was used to acquire gold that would be melted and broken up and destined for Dubai, Mr Clarke said. The Canadian bank is not alleged to have done anything wrong.

The lender also delivered around £50m of gold — about 1,700 kilograms — to Mr Stunt’s company.

Mr Stunt, who was previously married to Mr Ecclestone’s daughter Petra, says he did not know the cash was criminal and has denied any misconduct.

He told authorities if he had the “slightest suspicion that anything illegal” was taking place, he would have walked away, Mr Clarke said.

But the prosecutor said Mr Stunt was not as wealthy as he claimed he was.

“His own personal finances are shrouded in mystery,” Mr Clarke said.

Much of the gold, purchased with the Bank of Nova Scotia's financing, was cut up and melted down into “wholly anonymous” grains rather than being used to produce the branded gold bars, Mr Clarke said.

The money was sent overseas “in order that, in due course, it could be returned to the crooks from where it came”, he said.

The Bank of Nova Scotia later called in the loan, requiring Mr Ecclestone to repay the full $10m, he said.

Jurors previously heard directors at the English gold dealer tried to hide that they were processing huge amounts of cash from Bank of Nova Scotia.

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The smuggler

Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple. 
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.

Khouli conviction

Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.

For sale

A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.

- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico

- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000

- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950

KINGDOM%20OF%20THE%20PLANET%20OF%20THE%20APES
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Wes%20Ball%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Owen%20Teague%2C%20Freya%20Allen%2C%20Kevin%20Durand%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E3.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs

Engine: 1.5-litre turbo

Power: 181hp

Torque: 230Nm

Transmission: 6-speed automatic

Starting price: Dh79,000

On sale: Now

Specs

Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric

Range: Up to 610km

Power: 905hp

Torque: 985Nm

Price: From Dh439,000

Available: Now

The specs
  • Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
  • Power: 640hp
  • Torque: 760nm
  • On sale: 2026
  • Price: Not announced yet
Specs

Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request

Yahya Al Ghassani's bio

Date of birth: April 18, 1998

Playing position: Winger

Clubs: 2015-2017 – Al Ahli Dubai; March-June 2018 – Paris FC; August – Al Wahda

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Frida%20
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War 2

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Director: Kangana Ranaut

Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry 

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Tamkeen's offering
  • Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
  • Option 2: 50% across three years
  • Option 3: 30% across five years 
The specs

Engine: 3.5-litre twin-turbo V6

Power: 380hp at 5,800rpm

Torque: 530Nm at 1,300-4,500rpm

Transmission: Eight-speed auto

Price: From Dh299,000 ($81,415)

On sale: Now

MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW

Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman

Director: Jesse Armstrong

Rating: 3.5/5

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogenChromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxideUltramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica contentOphiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on landOlivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour

COMPANY%20PROFILE
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SPEC%20SHEET
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COMPANY PROFILE

Company: Bidzi

● Started: 2024

● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid

● Based: Dubai, UAE

● Industry: M&A

● Funding size: Bootstrapped

● No of employees: Nine

Kibsons%20Cares
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Updated: May 06, 2022, 9:17 AM