At Cwmbran Magistrates’ Court, a an illegal security officer faced legal action on fraud charges related to nondisclosure of information to the Security Industry Authority (SIA) last month. Using various aliases to conceal prior criminal records, the individual, Ashley Marcel Zennadi, admitted guilt in the fraud case during a court hearing on Thursday, 28 September 2023. The court imposed a fine of £200, along with a requirement to cover £645 in prosecution costs and a £34 court surcharge.
The SIA granted an SIA license to Ashley Marcel Zennadi on 10 May 2022 under the name ‘Tommy Trevor Egan’. However, Zennadi did not reveal any past criminal activities or the aliases used in previous SIA applications. Upon discovering suspicious activities, the SIA suspended Zennadi’s license.
During a cautionary interview on 20 December 2022, Zennadi confessed to submitting SIA license applications under the names ‘Tommy Egan’ and ‘Ashley Marcel’. He acknowledged his birth name as Ashley Zennadi and admitted to previous criminal convictions. He claimed his girlfriend had completed the application form, leading to missing or incorrect details.
Zennadi briefly served as a director of Viczen Security Ltd under the name ‘Marcel Zenn’ from 14 February 2020 to 22 March 2020. During this period, another individual named ‘Omar Victory’ also held a director position in the company until 01 November 2021. The SIA prosecuted Omar Victory for fraud on 15 June 2023.
Ashley Zennadi had previously applied for an SIA license in October 2019 and December 2010. Both applications were rejected by the SIA due to his prior criminal record.
Mark Chapman, one of the SIA’s Criminal Investigations Managers, is quoted as saying, “Mr Zennadi dishonestly failed to disclose to the SIA in his application forms aliases due to his previous record. He attempted to evade our checks by using multiple alternative names to apply for an SIA licence. In failing to declare his various name changes Mr Zennadi sought to disguise his adverse former history from the SIA.
Under both his birth name Ashley Zennadi and his alias Marcel Zenn, he had criminal convictions. He deliberately failed to disclose these to evade our scrutiny and illegally obtain a licence, this is a criminal offence. In this Zennadi sought to make a gain for himself by obtaining a legitimate SIA licence by fraudulent means. The licensing regime and the regulations that underpin it are there to protect the public and through his dishonest actions Mr Zennadi has demonstrated that he is wholly unsuitable to be the holder of an SIA licence.”