James Stunt is innocent while four others are guilty of laundering over £200 million of criminal money.

James Stunt, a socialite and former son-in-law of Formula One magnate Bernie Ecclestone, was acquitted of money laundering charges by a Leeds Crown Court jury. He was accused of being involved in a £200 million money laundering operation, which allegedly turned criminal money into gold. However, four other men — Gregory Frankel, Daniel Rawson, Haroon Rashid, and Arjun Babber — were convicted of the same charge.

• James Stunt (DOB: 21/01/1982) was found not guilty of concealing, disguising, converting, and transferring criminal property
• Gregory Frankel (DOB: 30/08/1977) was found guilty of concealing, disguising, converting, and transferring criminal property
• Daniel Rawson (DOB: 10/03/1977) was found guilty of concealing, disguising, converting, and transferring criminal property
• Haroon Rashid (DOB: 13/07/1970) was found guilty of concealing, disguising, converting, and transferring criminal property
• Arjun Babber (DOB: 02/07/1992) was found guilty of concealing, disguising, converting, and transferring criminal property.

Following the above convictions, the authorities are pursuing confiscation proceedings to ensure that the convicted men do not benefit from their criminal activities. This means that their assets will be seized to recover the proceeds of their crimes.

Police investigation and prosecution review

• A detailed and comprehensive West Yorkshire Police investigation into the activities of these defendants unearthed large amounts of unexplained cash passing through businesses.
• The cash was credited to the bank account of Fowler Oldfield after being collected from three different sites:
  • • Fowler Oldfield’s premises at an industrial-style unit at Hall Lane,
    • Bradford, the offices of Stunt & Co, Leconfield House,
    • Curzon St, London, and Pure Nines, New House, in Hatton Garden, London.
• The cash was brought into business addresses owned or managed by these defendants. It was delivered by cash couriers in sports bags, carrier bags, and holdalls full of hundreds of thousands of pounds at a time, all of which were paid into Fowler Oldfield's bank account.
• The prosecution case established that this cash represented criminal property, and Fowler Oldfield was used to launder the dirty money.
• Staff counted the cash on the premises using specialist counting machines such as those used in banks. The money was then bundled together for collection by G4S or the Post Office, who then delivered it to the NatWest bank to be deposited into Fowler Oldfield’s bank account.

Stunt maintained his innocence.

• Stunt maintained his innocence throughout the trial, stating he never suspected he was part of a criminal agreement.
• James Stunt maintained his innocence by asserting that he was unaware of any criminal activities associated with the money laundering operation. He claimed that he never suspected he was entering into a criminal agreement when he partnered with the other defendants.
• Stunt emphasised that he believed the money being handled was legitimate and was conducting business as usual. He also highlighted that his assets were frozen during the investigation, leading to significant financial difficulties, which he argued were inconsistent with someone knowingly involved in criminal activities.

Source:  

1. Four people convicted of one of the most significant money laundering .... https://www.cps.gov.uk/cps/news/four-people-convicted-one-largest-money-laundering-prosecutions-uk
2. James Stunt money laundering case: Socialite found not guilty in £200m .... https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/james-stunt-money-laundering-court-verdict-b2708649.html.
3. Socialite James Stunt cleared of money laundering. https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/socialite-james-stunt-cleared-of-money-laundering/ar-AA1AdsW0.
4. Socialite cleared of money laundering after trial. https://www.aol.com/socialite-cleared-money-laundering-trial-114459495.html.
5. Socialite James Stunt is cleared of any involvement in a huge £266 .... https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14358305/socialite-james-stunt-cleared-money-laundering-operation.html.
6. Socialite James Stunt cleared of money laundering. https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/socialite-james-stunt-cleared-of-money-laundering/ar-AA1AdsW0.
7. Socialite cleared of money laundering after trial. https://www.aol.com/socialite-cleared-money-laundering-trial-114459495.html.
8. James Stunt on Trial: Inside the £200 Million Money Laundering Scandal. https://regtechtimes.com/james-stunt-the-200-million-money-laundering/.
9. James Stunt on trial in case linked to Bradford firm. https://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/news/24628926.james-stunt-trial-case-linked-bradford-firm/.