Passenger on his way to Beirut caught with $1.3m in luggage at Heathrow Airport

A passenger has been charged with money laundering following the seizure of £1 million ($1.3 million) in cash from suitcases at Heathrow Airport.

Mazen Al Shaar, 48, was on his way to Beirut when he was stopped by Border Force officers at the UK's biggest airport on Saturday, and the money was seized.

Mr Al Shaar was remanded in custody after being refused bail when he appeared at Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court on Monday. He will appear at Isleworth Crown Court on April 17 for a pretrial plea hearing.

Andy Noyes, National Crime Agency branch commander, said: “So many of the serious and organised crime threats facing the UK are driven by offenders’ desire for money.

“This detection of £1 million was because of brilliant work by Border Force officers which has now sparked our investigation.”

The Home Office said that the seizure "highlights Border Force's dedicated efforts to protect our borders and keep the public safe”.

“Our officers are trained to spot suspicious behaviour and identify attempts to move illicit cash and other prohibited items across our borders,” said a representative.

"We continue to work closely with law enforcement partners, including the NCA to disrupt criminal networks."

In February, customs officials at Beirut Airport arrested a man arriving from Turkey with a bag containing $1.4 million in cash.

Meanwhile, a group of couriers who smuggled cash into Dubai as part of a £100 million money-laundering operation were jailed in the UK in 2023.

Gang members were paid about £3,000 each to take business-class flights with money from drug deals vacuum-sealed and packed into suitcases, typically containing up to £500,000 and weighing 40kg each.

The network collected cash – believed to be the profits of drug deals – from criminal groups in the UK and took it to counting houses, usually in rented apartments in central London.

In less than a year, couriers communicating via a WhatsApp group called Sunshine and Lollipops flew on more than 80 flights carrying the money.

Their network smuggled more than £104 million from the UK to Dubai during 83 separate trips between November 2019 and October 2020.

They were overseen by Abdullah Alfalasi, 47, who was jailed for more than nine years in July last year after the operation was broken up in an operation led by the National Crime Agency.