A collection of Hermès handbags owned by a jailed property magnate has sold for $550,000 at auction, as British authorities monitor the proceeds for potential seizure under proceeds of crime legislation. The sale, conducted by a London auction house, included a rare diamond-encrusted Himalaya Niloticus Crocodile Birkin bag, which alone fetched $150,000 from an anonymous bidder.
The tycoon, whose identity has been shielded by a court order pending ongoing investigations, is currently serving a six-year sentence for fraud and money laundering. Sources confirm the auction raised immediate interest from the National Crime Agency, which has powers to freeze assets believed to be the proceeds of unlawful conduct.
Documents uncovered by this reporter reveal the handbags were listed as part of a broader portfolio of luxury goods traced to a network of offshore shell companies. The auction catalogue listed 38 lots, including crocodile-skin Kelly bags, ostrich-skin clutches, and limited-edition silk scarves. The sale was originally scheduled for last year but was delayed after a court challenge by the tycoon’s family, who claimed the bags were gifts to former employees.
The High Court dismissed the challenge in February, ruling that the bags were “functional evidence of a lifestyle funded by criminal enterprise”. A spokesperson for the auction house confirmed that “all proceeds will be held in a court-administered account pending any future confiscation order”.
This is not a case of a simple collector downsizing. This is the unmistakeable scent of laundered money. The handbags represent just a fraction of the tycoon’s assets, which include a Mayfair penthouse, a fleet of luxury cars, and a stable of racehorses. The auction house, which specialises in luxury goods, did not respond to questions about how it verifies the provenance of items sold on behalf of convicted criminals.
A source close to the investigation described the auction as “a yard sale for the corrupt elite”. The NCA declined to comment, but a spokesman for the Serious Fraud Office said: “We are aware of the sale and are liaising with law enforcement partners to ensure that any proceeds linked to criminal activity are identified and restrained.”
The auction comes amid a wider crackdown on dirty money flowing through London’s luxury goods market. In January, the government launched a consultation on extending anti-money laundering obligations to auction houses and art dealers, who currently operate under lighter regulation than banks and estate agents.
For now, the £550,000 sits in limbo. The buyer, a private collector based in the Gulf, is not suspected of any wrongdoing. But the money’s journey is far from over. Follow the paper trail. The Hermès logo may be stitched into the leather, but in this case, the imprint of crime is just as indelible.
