Versace furniture, a fleet of Bentleys, Mercedes, and Rolls Royces, and a Swarovski-studded Arabic inscription of Allah adorned the Cheshire home of 19-year-old Adil, featured in the 2019 Channel 5 documentary 'Rich Kids Go Skint'. The voiceover boasted: "This rich kid going skint is the son of a self-made millionaire." Adil, who left school early to join his father's property empire, was made a director instantly. However, seven years later, this fact emerged in a Crown Court sentencing hearing, revealing a web of fraud.
The Downfall of Tariq Sarwar
Judge Peter Horgan jailed Tariq Sarwar, 59, of Gore Lane, Alderley Edge, for four years on June 12. Sarwar pleaded guilty to one count of fraud anticipating winding up and two counts of acting in contravention of a disqualification order. He had been banned from acting as a director in 2013 after his company owed at least £1.6 million to creditors. Yet, he arranged for over £250,000 to be paid to himself from an insurance claim before the company went into administration.
After the ban, Sarwar set up two property management companies in his wife Zarka's name and made his son Adil a director of one in 2018. "His wife was unwell and his son lacked experience," prosecutor Laura Kenyon told the court. "He took out loans in their names. There was substantial financial risk to them."
The Lavish Lifestyle and Hidden Debts
The family lived in a six-bedroom house with a fleet of luxury cars, a gardener, housekeeper, and chauffeur. But by 2018, Sarwar's companies owed substantial debts, including £134,000 to HMRC. When Langley Mill Business Park in Salford was sold for £5.1 million in 2018, most creditors were paid, but HMRC and a business partner were still owed around £500,000. Within nine days, Sarwar transferred over £3 million to a food wholesaler, KYCA, leaving no assets for creditors.
Christopher Francis, 40, of Aylesbury, the sole director of KYCA, received a suspended sentence for money laundering. He transferred hundreds of thousands of pounds to companies linked to Sarwar. The £3 million was later declared void by HMRC, and liquidators sued Zarka Sarwar, settling for £280,000. Sarwar was also sued by a creditor and forced to repay £200,000. The Insolvency Service confirmed HMRC was fully repaid, with investigations ongoing to confiscate remaining funds.
Sentencing and Aftermath
Sarwar's barrister, Andrew Horsell, argued that Sarwar had "dragged himself up by his boot straps" and was now "a shadow of what he was." He claimed public humiliation would be sufficient punishment. But Judge Horgan rejected this, stating Sarwar "demonstrated a real arrogance" and "put his wife and son at risk of reputational harm." Sarwar showed no reaction as he was jailed, expected to serve 40 percent of his sentence.
