Ian Cole ordered to pay back more than £800,000

Ian Cole, a Rochdale businessman who laundered hundreds of thousands of pounds, has been ordered to repay more than £800,000.

Cole (born 17/05/1961), of Kirkhill Avenue, Haslingden, who ran numerous businesses in Rochdale (including three car lease companies: Translease Uk Ltd, Network North West and NET Security) admitted four counts of money laundering, one count of fraud and a separate offence of perverting the course of justice and was previously jailed for a total five and a half years.

In June 2008, an investigation was launched into an organised crime gang (OCG) based in Oldham that were involved in the sale and supply of drugs.

During the operation 27 kilos of heroin, ¼ kilo of cocaine and three commercial cannabis farms, with an estimated street value of £2.5m, were recovered.

Mohammed Farid (30/09/73), of Wellington Road, Oldham, was identified as being at the head of the OCG. He was jailed for 17-years-and-five months in June 2012, for drugs and money laundering offences.

As part of the operation a thorough financial investigation was launched into the gang's finances.

Investigators soon established that Cole was a significant player in the laundering of drug money.

Cole ran numerous businesses in Rochdale, including three car lease companies: Translease Uk Ltd, Network North West and NET Security.

Translease UK Ltd in particular had a fleet of about 200 prestige cars, including Aston Martins, Porsches, Lamborghinis, Bentleys and Audis.

At a Proceeds of Crime Hearing on Thursday 8 January 2015, he was found to have benefited by £4,329,145. Based on available assets he has been ordered to repay £832,623.

If he fails to pay the money back within six months, he will face a further three-and-a-half years in prison.

The assets mainly comprise a large number of vehicles from his car hire companies, equity in his home, cash held in bank accounts and cash seized from him during house searches.

Financial Investigator Hannah Davidson, said: "Operation Walrus was a significant, complex and protracted investigation into a large group of individuals involved in the sale and supply of drugs and subsequently the laundering of large sums of money.

"Cole was Farid's go-to-man who willingly laundered hundreds of thousands of pounds of drug money that he significantly benefited from and that allowed Farid to build up an impressive property portfolio.

"Once again we have demonstrated our continued determination to strip criminals of any and all of their ill-gotten gains."

Ben Southam, Senior Crown Prosecutor for the CPS North West Complex Casework Unit said: "This has been an extremely complex investigation to prove that Ian Cole was laundering the proceeds of a high level drug trafficker. CPS and police have remained determined throughout that he should not benefit financially from his crimes.

"The criminal justice system takes the laundering of drugs money very seriously as Ian Cole's prison sentence demonstrated, and today he has been ordered to pay back more than £800,000 within six months or face a further lengthy period in prison.

"This case is another example of how the CPS and the police will continue to work tirelessly to strip criminals of their ill-gotten gains."