A BEVERLEY businessman who built a £1million property empire of nine homes with the help of a fake passport was found driving a Bentley Continental without a licence.
Turkish-born Bahadir Telli, 29, was stopped by Greater Manchester Police on the M6 after receiving information an un-insured driver was at the wheel of a luxury convertible.
Father-of-two Telli, of St Nicholas’ Drive, Beverley, was in breach of his driving ban imposed for drink-driving. More seriously he was also in breach of a nine-month suspended prison sentence imposed for a period of two years by Hull Crown Court for using a fake Italian passport. He risked being jailed.
Telli entered the UK in 2003 on a tourist visa and set about building a fast food and property business. At the age of 23 he was granted leave to stay in the UK in 2006 as a self-employed businessman - but was never granted citizenship.
Hull Crown Court heard before the age of 24 he had bought nine properties seeing an opportunity in the booming housing market. The homes were in Westwood Road, Beverley and Robin Close, Brough. They were mortgaged as buy-to-let properties. All were made using a counterfeit, Italian passport given to him by his father stating he was born in Rome when in fact he was born in a district of Ankara.
He would have got away with his dealings, but for the fact the property market crashed. Many of his tenants were unable to pay their mortgages and he went bankrupt. After emerging from bankruptcy in March 2010 he still owned a flat in Westwood Road, Beverley and a house in Sharp Street, Hull.
Prosecuting in the last hearing Crown barrister Nigel Clive said Telli last appeared at Hull Crown Court in April 2011 for using a false passport to get loans.
Mr Clive said Telli appeared for sentence for driving while disqualified and having no insurance after being stopped near Manchester on December 28 2011.
He said Telli was banned from driving on November 7 2011 for failing a road side breath test and refusing to give a specimen of breath at a police station.
Telli admited driving while disqualified and driving without insurance.
Defence barrister Harold Bloomfield said: “The disqualification from driving has hit Mr Telli hard.” He said it was his misfortune to be stopped the first time he had driven the luxury Bentley.
Recorder Anthony Hawks told Telli: “You are a young man with considerable skills in various areas of life, but you are going the right way about going to prison. You were made the subject of a suspended prison sentence last April. Since then you were disqualified from driving. With the ink barely dry on that ban you were out driving another vehicle. I sentence you on the basis this was the first time you had driven the vehicle. But I have grave suspicions about your attitude to the ban.”
He fined Telli £1,000 and endorsed his licence with six points and imposed a £15 surcharge.