Zamira Hajiyeva’s £19.5M mansion and golf course go up for sale after being seized by the NCA in a fraud investigation linked to her jailed Azerbaijani banker husband.

A Knightsbridge mansion and a Berkshire golf course valued at £19.5 million have gone up for sale after being forfeited by Zamira Hajiyeva, the wife of a jailed Azerbaijani banker.

The properties were seized following a six-year investigation by the National Crime Agency (NCA) into fraud and money laundering.

The Forfeiture of Luxury Assets

Hajiyeva agreed to forfeit Mill Ride Golf Club in Ascot and a Knightsbridge mansion valued at £14.75 million after a lengthy investigation. The NCA uncovered that Hajiyeva had spent over £16 million on shopping sprees at Harrods over the course of a decade.

As a result, two Unexplained Wealth Orders (UWOs) were upheld against her by the Supreme Court. These became the first-ever UWOs granted in the UK, often referred to as “McMafia orders”, a term inspired by the BBC drama.

Hajiyeva’s Lavish Spending at Harrods

Court documents revealed that Hajiyeva spent millions at Harrods, with £600,000 spent in a single day and £4 million at Boucheron, a luxury jeweller. Other purchases included £1 million in the toy department and £30,000 spent on Godiva chocolates.

Among the most extravagant was £433,389 for Cartier jewellery, and a £99,574 spend at Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, a Disney-inspired transformation experience for children.

The Source of the Wealth

Hajiyeva’s husband, Jahangir Hajiyev, served as the chairman of the International Bank of Azerbaijan (IBA). He is currently serving a 16-year prison sentence in Baku after being convicted of fraud, embezzlement, and abuse of office.

The NCA tracked the funds through accounts in Luxembourg, Panama, Cyprus, and other jurisdictions. These funds were then used to acquire luxury assets, including the 170-acre Mill Ride Golf Club and the mansion.

Jahangir Hajiyev was the chairman of the International Bank of Azerbaijan (IBA), the largest bank in the country. His career in the banking sector gave him considerable influence and access to substantial financial resources. Under his leadership, IBA played a crucial role in Azerbaijan’s financial sector, providing loans and credit to both state and private entities.

However, his position of power at the head of such a major institution would eventually set the stage for his involvement in large-scale corruption.

Corruption and Fraud:

In 2015, Hajiyev was arrested and charged with embezzlement, fraud, abuse of office, and other financial crimes. The accusations centered on the idea that he had used his position at IBA to steal vast amounts of money through fraudulent loans and embezzlement.

He allegedly provided loans to people with ties to him and his family, and these loans were not repaid, leading to significant financial losses.

A critical part of the investigation revealed that Hajiyev was involved in laundering illicit funds through complex financial structures. He allegedly used offshore accounts and shell companies to hide his tracks, funnelling money through various international financial hubs, including the British Virgin Islands and Luxembourg.

Hajiyev’s ability to use his influence at IBA to cover up his actions allowed him to evade detection for years. His lavish lifestyle, which was funded by the stolen money, was particularly striking. This included expensive shopping sprees, luxury properties, and high-end assets, all of which became key pieces of evidence in the investigation.

The “McMafia” Connection:

Hajiyev’s case became widely known in the UK after the National Crime Agency (NCA) applied for what became known as the first-ever “unexplained wealth orders” in 2018. The legal term “unexplained wealth order” refers to a request for a person to explain how they can afford assets that seem to be disproportionate to their known income.

Hajiyev’s wife, Zamira Hajiyeva, became a central figure in the case. She had spent millions at luxury department stores like Harrods in London, buying jewelry, clothes, and even children’s makeovers at a Disney boutique.

The NCA uncovered that these lavish purchases were funded by illicit money linked to her husband’s fraudulent activities. This prompted a public outcry and media attention, which labeled the Hajiyevs’ case as a real-life example of “McMafia,” a reference to the BBC TV show about global organized crime.

Conviction and Jail Sentence:

In 2016, after a lengthy investigation, Jahangir Hajiyev was convicted in Azerbaijan. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison for his role in defrauding the bank and laundering money. His conviction was one of the highest-profile cases of corruption in Azerbaijan’s history, and it highlighted the significant issue of financial misconduct within the country’s political and economic elites.

Government Seizure and Sale Proceeds

The British government will receive 70% of the proceeds from the sale of the seized assets, minus the NCA’s operational costs. The NCA emphasized that the properties were purchased using funds obtained from criminal activity, although there was no conclusive evidence that Hajiyeva was directly involved in the financial misconduct.

NCA’s Efforts to Combat Financial Crime

Tim Quarrelle, NCA commander, stated that the successful outcome of the case, after over six years of investigation, demonstrates the agency’s dedication to combating illicit money flow in the UK.

Simon Armstrong, NCA deputy director, echoed this sentiment, emphasizing that the agency would continue to utilize its legal powers to recover proceeds from criminal activities.