Forfeited Knightsbridge Mansion and Golf Course of Jailed Banker’s Wife Listed for £19.5M
A forfeited Knightsbridge mansion and a Berkshire golf course, once the prized assets of a jailed Azerbaijani banker’s wife, have been put on the market for a combined £19.5 million after a six-year fraud investigation by the National Crime Agency (NCA).
Zamira Hajiyeva, who became infamous for her extravagant £16 million shopping spree at Harrods, agreed to forfeit the properties following the UK’s first-ever Unexplained Wealth Orders (UWOs). Often called “McMafia orders”, a nod to the BBC crime drama, these legal tools compel individuals to explain the source of their wealth when authorities suspect it may be linked to criminal activity.
The properties in question include Mill Ride Golf Club in Ascot, a vast 170-acre estate, and a five-bedroom mansion on Walton Street in Knightsbridge, just minutes from Harrods. The mansion is listed at £14.75 million, while the golf course is priced at £4.25 million.
Hajiyeva’s husband, Jahangir Hajiyev, was the chairman of the International Bank of Azerbaijan before being convicted of fraud, abuse of office, and embezzlement. He is currently serving a 16-year sentence in Baku. The NCA determined that the couple’s UK assets were obtained through large-scale fraud and money laundering, concluding that there was “no reasonable explanation” for how they were funded.
Under the terms of the asset forfeiture, 70% of the proceeds from the sale will be retained by the UK government, with the remaining 30% returned to Hajiyeva. Despite consistently denying wrongdoing, her legal team stated that she opted to settle as it became impossible to defend the proceedings, particularly with Azerbaijani authorities allegedly restricting access to her husband during the UK case.
This high-profile case highlights how the UK is ramping up its crackdown on illicit wealth, particularly within London’s luxury property market. The introduction of UWOs marked a major shift in tackling money laundering, giving law enforcement the power to seize assets even without a criminal conviction if the source of funds cannot be explained.
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