Gurmeet Handa, from Little Aston, laundered more than £5 million in cash
17:30, 09 Oct 2025Updated 17:32, 09 Oct 2025
Gurmeet Handa laundered more than £5.3million in cash(Image: WMP)
A Birmingham man who laundered more than £5.3 million in cash through properties has been jailed.
Gurmeet Handa was behind the complex web of fraud involving dozens of properties which unravelled after West Midlands Police seized £30,000 in notes from an address in Alum Rock in 2016.
The seizure saw teams from Regional Economic Crime Unit, West Midlands Regional Organised Crime Unit and HMRC join together in an two-and-a-half year investigation into Handa’s dirty dealings.
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They identified that Handa had purchased around 30 properties despite declaring little or no income to HMRC.
He bought these houses using money sourced from a large number of bank accounts, including accounts based outside of the UK.
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Eventually, they established that Handa had accrued more than £5.3 milllion and he was charged with money laundering.
The 52-year old, of Newick Avenue, Little Aston, appeared at Birmingham Crown Court on Thursday 2 October after pleading guilty to money laundering.
Handa was jailed for six years and nine months and ordered to pay back £5.8million- including £460,000 to HMRC for unpaid taxes.
Failure to pay will result in him receiving a further 10-year additional sentence and he will also have to sell 28 properties secured by his criminal activity.
Avtar Nijjer
Avtar Nijjer, 73, of Uppingham Road, Leicester, was found to be working alongside Handa, depositing cash on his behalf over a year long period.
He was sentenced to a year and three months in prison for money laundering and ordered to pay back £138,125.
Failure to do so will result in a year being added onto his sentence.
Iftikhar Hussain, aged 68, from Birmingham, was also charged with money laundering and received a 12-month community order for his role in moving £29,400 in cash on one occasion.
Detective Constable Richard Causier, of the Regional Economic Crime Unit, said: “This was an incredibly vast case that took around two-and-a-half years to investigate before the individuals were charged.
“It included analysing over 100 bank accounts, reviewing large amounts of digital evidence, using Proceeds of Crime Act powers to execute warrants and restrain property and working with expert witnesses.
“I want to thank everyone involved in this investigation.
“It’s a text book example of how working in partnership can result in uncovering a sophisticated criminal operation like this, which has not only put criminals behind bars for their actions but also removed the benefit they received from such activity.”
A HMRC spokesperson said: “We are and always will be on the side of the law-abiding majority, working with partners like West Midlands Police to investigate anyone suspected of laundering the proceeds of crime.
“Anyone with information about money laundering or any type of tax fraud can contact HMRC online.