Glamorous mother-of-two accused of £104m smuggling plot remains wanted by NCA

…By Lola Smith for TDPel Media.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) is still seeking 42-year-old Michelle Clarke, a glamorous married mother of two, who is accused of masterminding a £104m cash-smuggling plot.

Prosecutors claim that Clarke recruited several women, including ex-glamour model Jo-Emma Larvin, for shipping large amounts of currency.

Larvin travelled between Heathrow and Dubai carrying suitcases filled with cash.

On one trip, she was accompanied by her partner, Jonathan Johnson, carrying £2.8m hidden in their luggage.

The couriers were paid £3,000 plus expenses for their numerous cash runs to Dubai.

The NCA believes Clarke is currently living in a villa on the exclusive Dubai Hills residential estate.

Lesley Hayton, a technical advisor from HM Treasury and a money laundering expert, explained that the conspirators packed coffee and air freshener in their cases to distract sniffer dogs from the smell of banknotes.

Any sum of more than €10,000 in cash cannot be taken out of the EU without being declared to HM Revenue & Customs.

Coffee is believed to confuse sniffer dogs and put them off the scent of cash.

Clarke, who previously worked as a digital coordinator for Sky TV, is described in court as the kingpin behind the plot.

Larvin, Johnson, and 26-year-old Beatrice Auty from Fulham were convicted of removing criminal property from the UK.

Larvin had denied any wrongdoing, claiming she believed she was carrying the cash on behalf of the UAE Embassy.

Clarke is outside the jurisdiction, so does not appear in the dock.

The NCA has not confirmed if extradition proceedings have begun to bring her to the UK.

The Extradition Treaty between the UK and the UAE came into force in 2008, meaning that fugitives can only evade British justice in a limited number of countries, including Afghanistan, Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Namibia, North Korea, Somalia, and Syria.

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