Solicitor, Ross McKay, jailed over money laundering links struck off

McKay: identified as gangsters' 'go-to' for helping to facilitate illegal deals

This post first appeared on Peter Oakes's Linkedin Page on 3 July 2020.  Given the high level of interest in the post, we have published further information here about the details of the case.

One for the money laundering typologies.

This is a useful example to demonstrate how a corrupt solicitor can launder money for clients.

ow many times has the compliance department been told "Hey its OK, the client is being vouched for by his / it's lawyer. We don't need proof of source of funds or wealth". Well here's the story of the gangsters' 'go to' solicitor.

• Father-of-three Ross McKay, 39, formerly of Wilmslow, United Kingdom agreed to be struck off the roll.
• ​McKay was jailed for 7 years back in January 2019 for helping fraudsters develop a multi-million-pound property portfolio.
• McKay was responsible for more than 80 property transactions for various criminals, all of whom were subsequently convicted of offences including money laundering and fraud.
• McKay was the conveyancing solicitor who gave a 'veneer of respectability' in a series of illicit properties deals masterminded by Scott Rowbotham, 35 years of age. Businessman Rowbotham managed 88 homes and made huge profits.
  McKay, of Wilmslow, was jailed for seven years leaving wife and children behind
• During McKay's trial, Manchester Crown Court was told he was the gangsters’ ‘go-to’ solicitor who would carry out property transactions without asking questions about where money had come from.  The trial also heard McKay represented Billy Black, a friend of killer Dale Cregan.  Black is currently serving 22 year for fraud and drugs offences. 
• Rowbotham accumulated around £500,000 a year in rent from his property empire, getting mortgage lenders to hand over huge amounts by lying about his income.  Rowbotham told clients he was an operations manager for a TV company with a salary of £48,000 a year - but the fake pay slips covered up the reality - that he had only declared £1,000 in income and £18.20 in tax over 11 years. 
• Rowbotham's girlfriend was also pocketing £20,000 in tax credits at the time.   
• Worked for two clients on total purchases worth more than £7.3m.
• Assisted them in the acquisition of criminal property.
• The court was told that deposits were put down on property where the source of funds was disguised and mortgage applications used nominees instead of the names of the legitimate purchasers.
• Mortgage applications used nominees instead of names of legitimate purchasers.

Read more at:
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2 July 2020 - Solicitor jailed over money laundering links is now struck off
8 January 2019 - 'Go to' solicitor for dodgy property deals jailed for seven years
7 January 2019 - Corrupt lawyer, 39, linked to police killer Dale Cregan is jailed for seven years after he helped a buy-to-let landlord use dirty money to fraudulently build a £10.8m property empire - 

For advice and training on anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing contact Peter Oakes at CompliReg.