A civil servant jailed on his 56th birthday for fraud allegedly stabbed his mother with scissors decades ago before pressuring her to sign over the family home, a court heard.
Kashim Chowdhury appeared devastated as he was remanded in custody after a jury convicted him of nine fraud offences involving more than £280,000.
During a three-year period, Chowdhury held several overlapping government positions, including roles with Defra and the Home Office. At one point, he was working in as many as five jobs simultaneously while building up his savings.
Prosecutors said he took advantage of post-Covid working arrangements to carry out the roles from his £2 million home in east London, where he was caring for his seriously ill mother.
The six-bedroom property, located just off fashionable Brick Lane, is now at the centre of a legal dispute involving Chowdhury’s three older siblings, although the jury in his fraud trial was not told about the case.
It can now be reported that Chowdhury’s brothers Abdul and Anis Chowdhury, together with his sister Fowzia Hussain, believe he pressured their terminally ill mother into signing documents concerning ownership of the house.
They claim a Declaration of Trust, a Deed of Gift and a Land Registry transfer document were all ‘the product of undue influence’ by Chowdhury, amid fears that he would be left without a share of the property after their mother, Faijun Nessa, died in July 2023.
The court also reportedly heard that Chowdhury stabbed his mother with a pair of scissors in the 1980s.
Kashim Chowdhury was convicted of fraud at Southwark Crown Court today – his 56th birthday
Chowdhury maintained that he was his mother’s only carer and said she freely chose to transfer the house after obtaining independent legal advice.
The property dispute was heard in the High Court while Chowdhury was giving evidence during his separate fraud trial at Southwark Crown Court, approximately a mile away.
The unusual circumstances led High Court judge Amanda Hardy KC to impose reporting restrictions on the civil proceedings, preventing journalists from publishing details until the criminal trial had ended. All three siblings had accused Chowdhury of dishonesty.
Chowdhury told the High Court that his mother could not read or write in English or her native Bengali. He said she had initiated the preparation of the documents, arranged her own legal advice and kept him unaware of the details and her intentions.
He said his only wish was to have somewhere to live.
Chowdhury also claimed his mother had discussed her plans with many friends. However, he could not explain why none of those friends or any of the solicitors involved had been called to support his account.
Aidan Briggs, barrister for the claimants, put it to him: ‘I am going to suggest … your mother was simply doing what you told her to do. You coerced your mother into signing these documents.’
Chowdhury replied: ‘If there was any coercion my mother would have told lots of people. And there is no evidence she ever said “Kashim was coercing me”.’
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Chowdhury was also locked in a High Court battle with his siblings over the family home
As the dispute between the siblings intensified, Chowdhury told the judge: ‘She (mother) wanted to make sure I was safeguarded.
‘Any stress was entirely caused by my siblings in this matter – they descended on this property for one reason, it was greed, and my mother knew that.
‘My mum was an intelligent woman, she said she experienced things like this and wanted my future safeguarded.
‘All I said was I wanted a roof over my head, and that my siblings wanted proceeds out of this. I never wanted a single penny.’
The court heard that Mrs Nessa, a devout Muslim, had previously wanted the property divided according to Sharia principles, under which male heirs receive twice the share of female heirs.
The judge is expected to deliver her conclusion at a later date.
Meanwhile, Chowdhury is due to spend his first night in prison after being convicted of fraud.
The court heard that he used sick leave and holidays to manage his workload and maintain the alleged deception. He was also accused of applying make-up to appear unwell during a video call with managers, although his work was generally considered poor.
Chowdhury, who was frequently appointed to senior project manager positions with salaries of up to £52,000, said he was struggling with his mental health while caring for his terminally ill mother.
He denied attempting to mislead his employers and claimed investigators had lost evidence that would have supported his innocence.
However, prosecutors said he had ‘positively lied about his employment history and having other full-time jobs’. He was convicted on all nine counts and stared straight ahead as the unanimous verdicts were delivered.
His Honour Judge Mark Weekes ordered Chowdhury to be taken into immediate custody, saying: ‘This is a defendant whose world, from his point of view, must appear to be collapsing around him.’
The judge said Chowdhury had approached the case ‘on a somewhat unrealistic basis’. The jury took seven hours to reach unanimous guilty verdicts on every count.
Chowdhury, whose identity was first revealed by the Mail in April last year, was remanded in custody and is due to be sentenced in January. Fraud carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years.
The Government said it ‘will continue to use all available avenues to recover the proceeds of Chowdhury’s offending on behalf of taxpayers’.