Re: Arrest Over Cricket ‘Match-Fixing’ At Lords
Alleged fixer’s tangled web of businesses
The businessman at the centre of the Pakistan match-fixing allegations has been involved with almost 30 companies in recent years, all but three of which have now closed down.
Two of the firms formerly run by Mazhar Majeed, who was questioned by police over an alleged betting scam that has stunned the world of cricket, had assets worth more than £1million seized by receivers after running into financial difficulties.
He is still a property developer in Croydon, South London, with a bookmakers and two bank branches in his portfolio, but is owed more than £160,000 by his own company.
Mr Majeed, 35, was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud bookmakers after being caught by a Sunday newspaper allegedly agreeing to take £150,000 in cash in return for guaranteeing that Pakistani bowlers would deliver no-balls in the Test at Lord’s.
Although he claimed to act for several members of the team, he is not registered as an agent and almost all of his business interests relate to property development.
Analysis of Companies House records shows that he has been registered as a director of 26 companies over the past decade, 20 of which were set up on the same day in April 2008 and all called Capital Investments.
Of these companies, just three are still trading – an ice cream parlour called Afters Tooting Ltd and two development vehicles called Capital Investments No 2 and Capital Investments No 17.
Capital Investments No 17 owes Mr Majeed £161,666 in an “interest free loan” while the other firm owes him £1,429.
His sister-in-law, Jenna Manji, was listed as a director of five of the other Capital Investments companies, now dissolved.
His wife, Sheliza Manji, was a director of one of his other dissolved firms, Newdelta Developments.
Two of the companies Mr Majeed was involved with had to call in the receivers.
Valeco Ltd, set up three years ago, has been in receivership since April having taken out an £800,000 NatWest loan on a property in Croydon.
Able Trading Ltd, a property rental firm set up in 1997, was liquated owing £586,732 because “the company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business”.
Almost all of the companies were registered at an office in Croydon called Bluesky House, where his main company Bluesky Developments was based.
Mr Majeed was not listed as a director of Bluesky and its accounts are not available although Companies House files show it owes £74,163 in five outstanding County Court Judgements.
His former business partner says they closed the property renovation business down when the recession hit.
The website for his Capital Developments company states that it owns several retail buildings in South London, including a branch of William Hill in Brixton and two branches of Barclays Bank in Croydon.
He also owns a £1.8m six-bedroom mansion, which was searched by police and tax officials on Sunday, as well as an Aston Martin sports car.
Mr Majeed became “co-owner” of Croydon Athletic FC in summer 2008, and at the same time was director of a short-lived company called Metrocroft (CAFC) Ltd. Another firm of his called Metrocroft Consultants Ltd was said to have made unspecified investments of £1,024,104.
A YouTube video shows Mr Majeed appearing in a spoof documentary about a fictional Croydon football club called the Terriers, who share a ground with the real Croydon Athletic.
One scene in the trailer for Road to FA Cup shows Mr Majeed telling a player: “I want the keys back for my Aston. Until this rent’s paid, I want the keys back.”
