Welcome to my website.

I am a criminal defence solicitor based in London but I deal with serious criminal cases throughout the UK. Unlike some solicitors who offer a wide range of services to their clients I specialise in the defence of serious crime. I have over twenty three years of experience in advising and assisting clients at police stations and preparing defence cases for crown court trial with a particular emphasis on:

Murder

Fraud

Terrorism

Sexual Offences

Other serious crimes

I am a consultant with McCormacks one of London's leading criminal law defence firms with offices in the Barbican, Mile End, Stratford and Basildon. I can be contacted 24/7 for free legal advice at police stations throughout the London / Essex / Kent areas. I undertake both privately funded work and legally aided matters.

I qualified as a solicitor in 1988 and from 1989 to 2006 I was with a firm in the City of London, the last 11 years as an equity partner. I was the head of the criminal department and supervisor for Very High Cost/Serious Fraud Cases.

Whilst I deal with all areas of criminal law I specialise in murder and fraud cases. I have advised numerous clients at police stations in relation to allegations of murder (at least 12 since January 2008). In each case I personally attended the police station and advised the client whilst he/she was in police detention. This included two clients who had been arrested for the “Matalan Murder” and a client who was arrested for a murder and attempted murder at the Streatham Ice Rink. Following year-long investigations the police took no further action in relation to these allegations.

I also have vast experience in all areas of fraud including mortgage fraud, VAT/Duty fraud, money laundering and false accounting. In 2008 I assisted a firm in the City of London as a supervisor in a Serious Fraud Office prosecution where the client and others were charged with defrauding banks out of £310 million. The client was the only one to be found not guilty and the SFA were ordered to pay defence costs in full. I have also advised a number of clients in relation to alleged mortgage frauds including advising one client who together with 12 others was allegedly involved in one of the largest mortgage frauds in the UK. Additionally I have extensive experience of dealing with offences under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (acquiring, concealing, disguising, converting, transferring or removing proceeds of crime etc)

I have also represented clients in a number of other very serious / high profile cases including cases involving terrorism, “People smuggling”, large scale importation of class A drugs, kidnapping, armed robbery, blackmail, false imprisonment and sexual offences.

If you or someone you know is being investigated by the police, Serious Fraud Office or HM Revenue and Customs, then I can help. It is important to contact a solicitor early if you are under investigation. You can contact me 24/7 every day of the year for free legal advice at police stations. I will, in the majority of cases, personally attend the police station and advice you of your rights help you prepare for the interview and support you whilst you are at the police station. I will advise you whether it is in your interests to answer questions in the interview or whether you should exercise your right to remain silent. What you do or say in a police station when under investigation will have a major impact on your eventual acquittal or conviction. It is vitally important therefore to contact a solicitor as soon as possible.

If you are currently on police bail pending further enquiries by the police than please contact me for an appointment and I can attend the police station when you return to the police station

I regularly advise clients at the following police stations:

Acton Police Station, Barking Police Station, Barkingside Police Station, Barnet Police Station, Basildon Police Station, Belgravia Police Station, Bethnal Green Police Station, Bishopsgate Police Station, Braintree Police Station, Brentford Police Station, Brixton Police Station, Bromley Police Station, Charring Cross Police Station, Chelsea Police Station, Chingford Police Station, Colindale Police Station, Croydon Police Station, Dagenham Police Station, Ealing Police Station, Edmonton Police Station, Enfield Police Station, Forest Gate Police Station, Fulham Police Station, Hackney Police Station, Harlesden Police Station, Hammersmith Police Station, Harrow Road Police Station, Heathrow Police Station, Hillingdon Police Station, Holborn Police Station, Hornsey Police Station, Hounslow Police Station, Ilford Police Station, Islington Police Station, Kennington Police Station, Kensington Police Station, Kentish Town Police Station, Kilburn Police Station, Kingston Police Station, Lewisham Police Station, Leyton Police Station, Limehouse Police Station, Loughton Police Station, Marylebone Police Station, Nottingham Police Station, Paddington Green Police Station, Peckham Police Station, Plaistow Police Station, Plumstead Police Station, Richmond Police Station, Romford Police Station, Shoreditch Police Station, Snow Hill Police Station, Southall Police Station, Southwark Police Station, Stoke Newington Police Station, Streatham Police Station, Sutton Police Station, Tottenham Police Station, Uxbridge Police Station, Walthamstow Police Station, Walworth Police Station, Wandsworth Police Station, Wembley Police Station, West Drayton Police Station, West End Central Police Station, Wimbledon Police Station and Wood Green Police Station.

I also regularly advise clients who have been arrested by British Transport Police and regularly attend Ebury Bridge and Whitfield Street BTP stations.

Additionally I advise clients who have been arrested and are being detained by HM Revenue and Customs at City Airport, Dover, Folkestone, Heathrow, Stansted and Lower Thames Street in London.

Although I practice predominantly in the London area I have dealt with cases in Birmingham, Canterbury, Dover, Gloucester, High Wycombe, Leicester, Luton, Maidstone, Manchester, Margate, Milton Keynes, Southall and Tonbridge.

If you are unfortunate enough to be charged I will personally deal with your case throughout. I have extensive experience of preparing crown court cases for trial particularly offences of murder and complex fraud cases.

Please click on the past / current cases below to find out more about the kind of cases I currently dealing with/have dealt with.

You can contact me at anytime on 07770 267894, by email on maxanwar@btconnect.com or at 2 Romford Road, Stratford, London E15 4BZ.

MURDER

R v B: Client contacted me on my mobile to say that he had just strangled a man whilst having consensual sex and that he was locked in the room with the body. I advised the client to call the police and met the client at the police station. The client was charged with Murder, subsequently reduced to charge of Manslaughter by the Crown. The client had accepted from the outset that he and the deceased had been taking “poppers” and that at the request of the deceased he had squeezed the deceased’s neck whilst having consensual sex and that the deceased had died during this sexual activity. The original post mortem gave the cause of death as strangulation. However we requested our own post mortem examination and as a result of our report the crown’s expert accepted our pathologist’s opinion that the deceased had died as a result of vasovaga, inhibition. As a result the prosecution offered “No Evidence” and a “Not Guilty” verdict was formally recorded.

R v B: Client worked for an Optician who sacked him. Client subsequently charged with theft of optical equipment from his ex employer. Following this charge the client was also charged with witness intimidation (the witness being the client’s ex employer) A week before the trial in which the ex employer was due to give evidence the ex employer was shot dead near his pharmacy in Muswell Hill. Client charged with murder. Client found guilty. Case widely reported in all the national press.

R v J and W: I advised both the clients when they were arrested for murder. It was alleged that they had killed the deceased by setting him on fire whilst he slept in a doorway of a shop in Regents Street. Both clients jointly charged with murder. Both clients found not guilty.

R v M: The client’s estranged wife “disappeared” in November 1997. She was never seen or heard from again despite widespread national press coverage and two appeals on “Crimewatch” on BBC1. Her body was never found. The client who was a former GLC architect was charged with murder in October 2003 and stood trial at the Old Bailey in October 2004. The jury were unable to reach a verdict and the re-trial took place in June 2005. The client was found not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter and received a custodial sentence of 7 years. The case was widely reported in the national press.

Fraud/ Money laundering/VAT offences

R v C: Client jointly charged with 4 other Defendants of Money laundering and VAT offences involving over £5million. For various reasons trial did not take place for two years. However during this time we found out that Customs and Excise had inadvertently served one of the co defendants with some material, which we had not received. We applied for disclosure of the same material. The prosecution argued that whilst the material was of a “Highly Sensitive” nature it was completely irrelevant to this case. On our application for disclosure the Crown Court Judge ordered the prosecution to serve this material on all the defendants. The prosecution appealed to the Court of Appeal unsuccessfully. As a result the prosecution offered “No Evidence” on all the charges.

R v M: Client jointly charged with 3 others of conspiracy to defraud a bank out of £280million. Huge amount of prosecution evidence had to be considered, witness statements taken from client’s business associates in USA and defence trial bundles produced. After a three-month trial a re-trial was ordered after there were allegations of jury tampering. The retrial lasted for another three months. The Jury were unable to reach a verdict after 10 days of deliberations. The Prosecution did not seek a retrial.

R v O: Client jointly charged with 4 others of conspiracy to defraud a number of multi-national companies by stealing their latest soft ware and making it available to the public on the Internet free of charge. There were over 13 million pages of evidence (Mostly consisting of “internet chat”) and each of the three partners, myself included, were responsible for supervising two of the six case workers who worked exclusively on the same case for 18 months.

R v P: This was a Serious Fraud Office prosecution where the client and others were charged with conspiracy to defraud banks out of £310million. I supervised this case for another firm. The prosecution case lasted from September 2007 to February 2008 following which we made application of “no case to answer” which succeeded. The SFO were then ordered to pay the defence costs in full.

Sexual Offences

R v O: Client was at nightclub with a number of premiership footballers. Alleged victim believed client to be a premiership footballer. When she found out that he was not a footballer she accused him of rape. Following trial acquitted.

R v F: Client charged with rape. Victim was sister of a well known Hollywood star. Client stood trial at Snaresbrook Crown Court and was found not guilty. Case again widely reported in all the national press.

R v S: Client who was a social worker was accused by his former girlfriend of rape. Client found not guilty.

R v T: Client who was 15 years old was charged with two counts of sexual assault, GBH and robbery. Client found not guilty of all charges.

Terrorism

Ms I: Arrested for terrorism offences but releases without charge after being questioned over 7 days at Padding Green Police Station.

Mr H: Arrested for terrorism but released without charge after seven days of interviews after 7 days of questioning at Paddington Green Police Station.

R v L: Charged with terrorism offices and following trial in July 2009 at Central Criminal Court convicted of 7 charges and acquitted of one charge.

General Crime

R V G: Client a Chinese national and an alleged “Snakehead” was jointly charged with 8 other Chinese nationals of Kidnapping, Blackmail, and Grievous Bodily Harm with intent. The victims had been illegally smuggled in the UK allegedly by the “Snakehead”. After a three month trial at Harrow Crown Court my client was the only male defendant out of 6 to be acquitted of all charges.

R v I: Client jointly charged with 4 other defendants of Conspiracy to import Class A and B drugs valued in excess of £5million. The prosecution followed an eighteen-month investigation by Customs and Excise. Guilty pleas to importation of Class B drugs offered to Crown but were rejected. After four-month trial at Canterbury Crown Court client found not guilty of conspiracy to import class A drugs but guilty of conspiracy to import class B drugs (the same guilty pleas we had offered in the first place).

R v K: Senior customs officer charged with theft of a very large quantity of expensive items seized by HM Customs and Excise. Following a two month trial client found not guilty at Manchester Crown Court.

R v S: Client jointly charged with 10 others of Conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration. Reported in the national press as “Multimillion-pound people-smuggling ring” and “Thought to be amongst the biggest in Europe” Eventually we offered a limited basis of plea, which was accepted by the prosecution. Client sentenced to two years imprisonment.

R v S: Client jointly charged with 2 others of conspiracy to breach immigration laws by arranging sham marriages for illegal immigrants. The police investigation followed a “sting” by the News of the World reporter Maz Mahmood. It was alleged that the client and a priest at a church in Islington had organised 100’s of these sham weddings. A number of “Brides” were also arrested and charged. Clint was also charged with possession of a firearm and ammunition, witness intimidation and breaching a deportation order. The Crown eventually accepted a plea to the arrangement of 40 weddings and offered no evidence in relation to all the others counts. Client received a custodial sentence of 5 years.

MURDER

R v B- Client alleged to have killed his girlfriend following argument.Due to stand trial in December 2009.

R v C- Following fight between four men one man died from multiple stab wounds. Trial due to take place in October

R v F- Charged with 4 others of attempted murder and violent disorder. Due to stand trial.

R v M-Client and nine others charged with murder following a stabbing. The trial lasted for three months at the Central Criminal Court.

Mr G-Victim shot dead as he was getting into his car in Kennington. Client having been interviewed released on police bail pending further investigation.

Mr G-Arrested for murder and attempted murder at Streatham Ice Rink. No further action taken against the client by police after lengthy investigation.

Mr W- Arrested for the “Matalan Murder”. After a year investigation no further action taken by the police against client. I also advised another client in relation to the same investigation and no further action was taken against him as well.

FRAUD

R v A-Client together with one other and persons unknown alleged to have obtained goods/services from the internet using 100’s of compromised credit/debit cards and obtained goods/services to the value of £140,000. Client is due to stand trial in April 2010.

Mr A-On police bail in relation to conspiracy to steal £500,000.

Mr M-On police bail for large mortgage fraund

R v P-Client jointly charged with 13 others of evasion of VAT and excise duty totalling over £10million. Client is due to stand trial in April 2010.

Ms L. On police bail for conspiracy to defraud various banks out of £25million

Ms S. On police bail for alleged large mortgage fraud involving £1.2million

Mr S-On police bail for fraud involving £800,000.

Mr W-On police bail for money laundering over £2million

TERRORISM

R v L-Found guilty of 7 out of 8 counts of terrorism offences and awaiting sentence.

SEXUAL OFFENCES

R v O - Alleged victim believed client was premiership footballer. Having spent the night with him and on finding out he was not a Premiership footballer she made an allegation of rape to the police. Client acquitted of charge at trial.

R v T - Client charged with sexual assault, robbery x 2, GBH with intent and ABH. Found not guilty of all charges.

Mr O-Arrested for rape and other sexual offences but the police eventually took no further action against the client.

Mr D-Arrested for rape and possession of indecent images of children but no further action taken by police.

Mr K-Arrested for sexual assault on a female on a train. Another alleged victim then came forward and client further arrested. Eventually no further action taken by the police in relation to either allegation.

Mr O-On police bail for historic sexual offences going back to the 1970’s.

GENERAL CRIME

R v C-Client is due to stand trial in January 2010 for blackmail x 2, false imprisonment x3, kidnap x 3 and robbery x 3, the time estimate for the trial being 13-15 weeks.

R v E – Found not guilty of dangerous driving after re-trial.

R v Z - Client jointly charged with four others of “smash and grab” robbery on Mappin and Webb jewellers. Mr Z was the only defendant who was found not guilty

R v S-Client found guilty of people smuggling after a lengthy trial.

Mr M-Arrested for being concerned in the importation of a large amount of class A drugs. No further action taken against the client.

Mr O-Arrested for GBH with intent following a fight during which another male was glassed in the eye. No further action taken against the client.

www.legalservices.gov.uk

www.lawsociety.org.uk

www.mccormacks.co.uk