The Money: Homes, jewels and ice-cream..how dirty millions were rinsed

Jun 1 2008

AN old saying of Asian watch collectors goes "Anyone with money can appreciate jewels and gemstones but it takes someone with refinement to appreciate a fine timepiece".

The refinement of brutal gang boss Jamie Stevenson is arguable but there is no debate that for a few years he was one of Scotland's most extravagant and discerning horologists.

Officers searching his house and the homes of others that were raided in the Folklore busts of September 2006 found more than 40 luxury watches.

In fact, Stevenson had bought a dozen more and his collection, which included many of the rarest and most prestigious models on the market, was scattered around his safe houses. In total, they would be valued at more than £307,000.

Stevenson and his step-son Gerry Carbin showed good taste or had the best advice in amassing a collection that featured watches made Rolex, Dior, Cartier and Audemars Piguet.

Often buying from their favourite jewellers, Mappin & Webb in Glasgow's Buchanan Street and Strang's in the affluent southside suburb of Newton Mearns, their shopping spree between December 2003 and September 2006 included some of the most famous and expensive timepieces ever made.

One detective recalling the scramble of organised criminals to find loopholes in the Proceeds of Crime Act says many invested in high-end jewellery and watches as a way of hiding and washing their dirty money.

He said: "For a time, it was thought to be one way of doing it. Going into a jeweller and buying watches that would maintain or increase in value over the years seemed a relatively safe and straightforward way of getting rid of the banknotes while keeping the investment.

"Stevenson was already trading in jewels and watches through Amsterdam to help clean his money but you have to remember that, when the Proceeds of Crime Act came in, these guys basically went out and got a copy. The run on luxury watches was part of that process."

The process of turning Stevenson's dirty millions into an apparently legitimate fortune involved a morass of cash transfers, dubious import/export activity, property deals and front firms.

Legitimate frontmen, ideally with no serious criminal record and of no particular interest to the police, were installed to run the companies.

Some of the businesses were bought with dirty money but operated legitimately. Others were relentlessly used to launder drugs profits.

Pubs, security firms, scrapyards, sunbed parlours, nail bars and hairdressers are all favoured by Scottish criminals but taxi firms have remained an enduring favourite.

Fleets of minicabs making thousands of short trips are an almost impossible target for official scrutiny.

Drivers from Stevenson's firms were regular customers at a service station near his home in Burnside where fuel prices were usually the lowest around.

Stevenson would also fill up at the garage but he might not even have paid the bargain prices since he was its secret owner.

The garage was one of several Stevenson firms to be looked after by one of his key business associates, Anthony Burnette, a fixer who appeared on the Folklore tapes discussing commercial opportunities with Stevenson, including buying other forecourt garages.

The gangster also put money in car showrooms and haulage firms. The Iceman was not known for his sense of irony but his commerical assets also included a stake in a fleet of ice cream vans selling sweets around the schemes of Glasgow.

Dirty money launched each of his firms but many were not later used to launder drugs cash. They were straightforward investments gaining legitimacy with every year that passed. The garages, for example, would be rented to leaseholders who were often unaware of the true identity or business of the owner.

Stevenson also had extensive property interests. He bought scores of flats and houses in Scotland and around the world, with a portfolio that included homes in Spain, Holland and Eastern Europe.

He leased out many properties, some of which were bought at the development stage and off-loaded when built. Others lay empty until it was a convenient time to sell them.

One police source, involved in an investigation into Stevenson before the launch of Folklore, said: "Cleaning their money and keeping track of investments is a full-time job for Stevenson and criminals like him. Of course, they will not be burdened with the paperwork but have to instruct their people organising that, keep briefed on their investments and, most importantly, keep an eye out for new opportunities.

"That's the key. The volume of notes coming in has to be moved quickly or you literally run out of places to hide them.

"You need a range of options, a number of different channels to get rid of it so that, if one is closed, you can try another. Stevenson knew that. He wouldn't drive past a For Sale sign without thinking about it.

"He was always looking for things to do with his money."