Balli Group Plc
 Balli Group Plc       | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Formation | 26 July 1991 |
| Founder | • Vahid Alaghband • Nasser Alaghband • Hassan Alaghband • Donald Richard Chilvers |
| Headquarters | Mayfair, London, UK |
| Subgroups | Balli Aviation |
| A privately held company with a subsidiary, Balli Aviation that in 2010 pleaded guilty to charges of illegally exporting Boeing aircraft to Iran, in breach of sanctions. | |
The Balli Group Plc is a privately owned[1] Mayfair based company which has traded with Iran. Its subsidiary, Balli Aviation "pleaded guilty... in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to a two-count criminal information in connection with its illegal export of commercial Boeing 747 aircraft from the United States to Iran".[2] In 2013 the group appointed administrators amid large debts.[3]
Contents
Staff
The first secretary was Clive George Doxey May.[4] A non-executive director of the group was UK deep politician Lord Norman Lamont, former Chancellor of the Exchequer, former Chair of Le Cercle, from 25 September 1995 to 19 October 2012.[4]
Iranian aircraft deal
"In February 2008, the US State Department contacted its London Embassy requesting “immediate action” over three Jumbo Jets it believed were bound for Iranian-owned Mahan Air, which is banned from operating within the EC. The Boeing 747-400 aircraft, owned by Balli Aviation, a US subsidiary of the Balli Group, were undergoing maintenance in South Korea, but the US had “strong reason to believe” they were bound for Mahan Air."[1] In 2010 the US DOJ announced that "Balli Group PLC and Balli Aviation Ltd. have agreed to pay a civil penalty of $15 million of which $2 million will be suspended if there are no further export control violations."[2]
2013 bankruptcy administration
Balli Group plc and two of its affiliates entered administration on 20 March 2013, with Deloitte LLP appointed as administrators.[5] The group had debts of more than £834 million.[6]
Exposure
The US embassy cables came to light through Wikileaks.[7]
SFO Investigation
The Serious Fraud Office announced on 3 May 2017 that they were investigating Balli Group Plc, Balli Steel and Balli Trading Ltd.[8] In Augist 2017 the SFO arrested 7 people "made alongside searches on five premises in London and the southeast".[9]
References
- ↑ a b http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/wikileaks/8299355/WikiLeaks-cables-British-firms-made-millions-from-trading-with-Iranians.html
- ↑ a b https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/uk-firm-pleads-guilty-illegally-exporting-boeing-747-aircraft-iran
- ↑ https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/seven-arrested-in-sfo-s-balli-investigation-mf8kvkhws
- ↑ a b https://companycheck.co.uk/company/02632984/BALLI-GROUP-PLC/companies-house-data
- ↑ http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-balli-steel-administration-iran-idUKBRE9310KS20130402
- ↑ https://www.businessinsider.com/sfo-investigating-balli-group-linked-to-former-chancellor-lord-lamont-2017-6
- ↑ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/wikileaks/8299355/WikiLeaks-cables-British-firms-made-millions-from-trading-with-Iranians.html
- ↑ https://www.sfo.gov.uk/cases/balli-group/
- ↑ https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/seven-arrested-in-sfo-s-balli-investigation-mf8kvkhws
