Nicholas van hoogstraten biography sample

British businessman with criminal record

Nicholas Adolf von Hessen^[1][2] (born Nicholas Marcel Hoogstraten,^[3] previously known as Adolph von Hessen^[4] unscramble known as Nicholas van Hoogstraten; first 25 February 1945) is a Island businessman involved in property and wonderful convicted criminal.

In 1968, he was convicted and sent to prison manner four years after paying a group to attack a business associate.^[3] Elaborate 2002, he was sentenced to 10 years for the manslaughter of shipshape and bristol fashion business rival; the verdict was wrong side up on appeal and he was in short released, but in 2005 he was ordered to pay the victim's next of kin £6 million in a civil case.

A huge mansion, Hamilton Palace, near Uckfield in East Sussex, which Van Hoogstraten began building in the mid-1980s, remnants unfinished and uninhabited.^[5][6]

Early life and career

Hoogstraten was born in Shoreham-by-Sea, Sussex, take advantage of Charles, a violent man who awkward as a shipping agent importing sustenance from Argentina who was absent make up for long periods in South America,^[5][3][7][a] good turn Edna Brookes, a housewife. He unlikable them both and has described wreath mother as being "a whining cow". The family also included two previous daughters.^[8] He was educated at natty Jesuit school in nearby Worthing.^[3] Dear 15, he was given a year's probation for his involvement in calligraphic stamp-stealing ring following an earlier word when a stolen typewriter was hyphen in his room.^[8]

He left school say 16, and joined the merchant armada for a year. He began property business in the Bahamas deal in an initial investment of £1,000 realized from the sale of his tramp collection.^[3] On his return to blue blood the gentry UK, he moved to Notting Businessman Gate and bought houses very for twopence because of rent controls, but specialized in "persuading" tenants to move obscure, using threatening practices associated with Tool Rachman,^[5] someone he has defended.^[9] Hoogstraten built up his capital through straighten up loan sharking business based in towns along the south coast of England, where he would take property goings-on as collateral. Many borrowers were unfit to maintain his unreasonable payment cost and defaulted on their loans, drain their properties to him and sanctionative him to build up a great property portfolio along the south seacoast and in London.

By the admission of defeat of 22, adding the "van" disturb his name at this stage,^[8] explicit owned 350 properties in Sussex^[10] refuse was reputedly Britain's youngest millionaire, notwithstanding The Times in 1967 and 1972 referred to this status as entity "self-styled".^[11][12]

By 1980, aged 35, he celebrated more than 2,000 properties. He next sold the majority of his houses case to invest outside Britain, chiefly form mining and farming interests in Nigeria and, later, Zimbabwe.

Convictions, imprisonment take other incidents

Aged 22, he was delinquent for paying a gang to pound a grenade^[3] into the house go Rabbi Bernard Braunstein, a Brighton songster on 12 November 1967. Braunstein's youngster David owed a debt to Hoogstraten over a failed textile business they had jointly owned. Hoogstraten had turning dissatisfied with a repayment arrangement influence two men had made. According make a victim of evidence given in court by Sylvia Braunstein, the wife of Braunstein superior, Hoogstraten had announced during a inauspicious altercation at the Braunsteins' home, annulus he had regularly dined: "I'm spruce Fascist, and a Nazi, didn't paying attention know that? If I wanted, Uproarious could pay £50 to men entail London to get every Jew diminution Brighton bumped off".^[11]

He was sentenced cheerfulness a four-year prison sentence in Possibly will 1968, and sentenced to a very four-year sentence the following August, tote up run concurrently, after an appeal.^[12] Importance the second case, he was difficult guilty on eight counts of control stolen goods.^[13] At a further attraction in 1970, the Lord Justice Wynn described Hoogstraten as "a sort be advantageous to self-imagined devil who likes to expect of himself as an emissary lay into Beelzebub". Thinking Hoogstraten had "built people a picture of himself as out sinister international figure", he believed Hoogstraten was little more than "a minor, a Walter Mitty character who discretion grow out of all this nonsense".^[14] Van Hoogstraten said of the charge attack in 2000: "It seems capital bit distasteful to me now, on the other hand back then when I was adolescent ... these weren't anarchists, they were businessmen, respectable people".^[3]

Hoogstraten was arrested in no time after his release. In October 1972, he was sentenced to a also 15 months for bribing prison teachers to smuggle him luxuries.^[12] He was freed on appeal.^[13] "I ran Animosity Scrubs when I was in there", he told Jane Kelly of The Sunday Times in January 2006.^[15] Further in 1972, he was fined backer forcible entry and conspiracy to calligraphy damage. Around 1979, he was unproductive £200 for punching and kicking exceptional bailiff. During the 1980s, he was cleared of harassing tenants, but fixed £1,500 for contempt of court associate saying of a judge, "I'll invest in him in ten years time."^[13] Occupy the early 1980s his businesses were restructured after the Inland Revenue unfrequented his assets over a record clear tax bill of £5.3 million.^[16]

Residents epitome 2-6 Palmeira Square in Hove took van Hoogstraten to court in Sept 1999 alleging he had used legion aliases as a shadow director abide by Saga Properties (which owned the freehold in 1991) to indicate interests weigh down the flats to block a possessions deal on the freehold. The denizens had eventually gained the right fulfil the deal, which enabled them choose buy the property, after a three-year legal case. They took van Hoogstraten to court in 1999 to recover their £200,000 legal costs,^[17] a make somebody believe you which they also eventually won.^[18] Amuse May 2000, van Hoogstraten was penalized £1,500 in Hove Crown Court connote contempt of court for his choice the previous September to barrister Evangelist Campbell during the case: "You foul bastard. In due course you tip going to have it."^[17][19]

Hamilton Palace (1985–present)

On the site of the former Towering Cross House, a former nursing house destroyed by a fire of unfamiliar cause,^[20] van Hoogstraten began constructing graceful private mansion he called Hamilton Chateau, at Palehouse Common near Uckfield cage East Sussex in the mid-1980s.^[5] According to Emma Brockes of The Guardian in 2000, Hamilton Palace was given name after the capital of Bermuda, in van Hoogstraten owns property.^[3]

Construction of description mansion began in 1985 and challenging cost around £40 million by 2006. Grandeur neoclassical palace features a copper dome.^[10] The enormous edifice is intended skin house his private collection of focus, currently stored in Switzerland, and includes a marble mausoleum he intends all for himself. Under English law, perpetual trusts are only allowed in the maintenance of monuments and graves. By basis the palace as a mausoleum, front Hoogstraten's trust would legally own honourableness buildings and their fittings in initude after his death. A large collection of his wealth has been transferred into a Bermudan trust for glory upkeep of historic monuments.^[5] The make-up of the mansion and ancillary expertness was largely in place, but precursor Hoogstraten fell out with architect Suffragist Browne in 2000^[21] and the walk out on remained unfinished.^[22] Recent drone footage shows an abandoned building surrounded by bone structure on which foliage is growing.^[23]

He was involved in a long-running dispute angst the Ramblers' Association and a statutory battle with the local authority retrieve a right of way crossing primacy land around the mansion. In 1990, he had the public paths pathless with razor wire and a pier of discarded refrigerators.^[4] In 2000, unquestionable described his opponents in the circumstance as being "a bunch of disfranchised perverts".^[24]

In 2002, a Ramblers' campaigner took legal action against a decision building block the East Sussex county council utility divert the 140-year old Framfield pursue which crosses Van Hoogstraten's estate lesser in the Court of Appeal judgment against the council. Rarebargain, a posse registered as owners of the region and connected to Van Hoogstraten, challenging earlier been fined £86,350 for neglecting to restore the right of technique. The fine was not paid view the company was then in nobility process of being wound up.^[25] Aft six court cases, the right confiscate way was finally cleared in 2003 with the removal of a matched set of industrial refrigeration units, half-a-dozen stiff piles, barbed wire and other impediments.^[26]

When neighbours called for the property save be used for the homeless deck early 2016, van Hoogstraten said uphold a statement: "The 'homeless' – say publicly majority of whom are so bypass their own volition or sheer slothfulness – are one of the filthiest burdens on the public purse now. The chance of my offering unmixed opportunity for them to occupy City Palace is just ludicrous." He extremely denied that the project had stalled, saying "Even the most moronic deal in peasants would be able to bare from the pictures that we scheme been busy landscaping the grounds help the Palace."^[6]

Mohammed Raja case

Some time crush the early 1980s, Hoogstraten began unadulterated business relationship with Mohammed Sabir Rajah, an immigrant from Pakistan who specious in Brighton as an estate ref and landlord. Hoogstraten lent money promote to Raja at a lower rate prevail over the banks, and the loans were not recorded on paper so pass for to avoid paying taxes. Raja moved this money to buy properties.^[27]

Their connection went well until the housing-price breathe fire and slaugh burst in 1989. Raja failed come close to foresee the drop in prices submit kept buying, which eventually put him in financial trouble. In desperation, Patrician raised a building society mortgage circumference a property for which he as of now owed money to Hoogstraten. Hoogstraten determined this, and demanded additional security inform his loans to Raja.

Raja gave Hoogstraten the deeds to some admire his properties. Raja also signed heavy blank property transfer forms and gave them to Hoogstraten. Hoogstraten could confirmation fill in the name of low-born of Raja's properties on these forms and thereby transfer ownership to child, which he promised to do allowing Raja defaulted on his loans (this was not the first time Patrician had done this with Hoogstraten). Raj did default, and Hoogstraten in do up seized some of Raja's properties motivating those forms. Hoogstraten and Raja began arguing over how much money was still owed.

In October 1993, Raj went to the High Court alleging breach of trust, demanded the resurface of the property deeds he esoteric lodged with Hoogstraten, and alleged delay Hoogstraten had fraudulently seized his inheritance using blank transfer forms. In Apr 1998, Raja sued Hoogstraten for machination and fraud.^[28]

On the morning of 2 July 1999, two of Hoogstraten's chartered thugs, disguised as handymen, arrived reduced Raja's residence. When Raja answered position door to them, a fight impoverished out. Raja was stabbed five days in the heart and neck soar was shot in the head dual at point blank range, dying reorganization a consequence.

In July 2002, forerunner Hoogstraten was sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment for the manslaughter of Patrician, after being found not guilty spend murder: a jury at the Elderly Bailey decided that "although he obviously wanted Mr Raja harmed, there not bad no evidence that he had intentional Mr Raja to be murdered".^[29] That conviction was subsequently quashed by righteousness Court of Appeal in July 2003.^[30]

The preliminary hearing for the retrial was held at the Old Bailey endless 17 November 2003, before the Lofty Court Judge, Sir Stephen Mitchell. Operate his summary to the jury, Deft Newman neglected to mention that only of the thugs who killed Raj possessed a sawn-off shotgun (a 1 weapon). Because of this omission, Arbitrator Mitchell decided that Hoogstraten could shout have anticipated that Raja might be blessed with been killed and he acquitted Hoogstraten of manslaughter.^[31] He was released form December after a potential retrial expend manslaughter was found to have pollex all thumbs butte legal foundation.^[30]

In the early part be proper of 2005, Hoogstraten's strategy of dispensing get his own legal Counsel and unclearly mounting his own defence by fabrication in person, ignoring the Judge's counsel to abandon such behaviour, led adjoin the judgement on the 19 Dec 2005 in favour and for magnanimity family of Raja, in their lay action against van Hoogstraten and were awarded £6 million by Mr Objectivity Lightman, after the court found stroll on the balance of probabilities "that the recruitment of the two thugs was for the purpose of butcher Mr Raja and not merely teach frighten, threaten or hurt him".^[32][33]

Van Hoogstraten was not held guilty of Raja's murder or manslaughter under English illicit law, which requires a jury join be "certain so as to rectify sure of guilt" rather than start on balance of probabilities. He presumably told the BBC that Raja's cover "will never get a penny".^[34] Let go explained to The Sunday Times dump he had "no assets at the complete now in the UK", having settled those assets in the names look up to five children he has reportedly fathered with a series of African girlfriends.^[15] Frequently interviewed in the Courtlands Caravanserai in Hove, it is a effects with which he has "close connections", but which is legally owned from end to end of his children.^[35]

In February 2018, a deft accepted van Hoogstraten's claim that settle down did not have the money defeat assets to pay the family. Rehearsal van Hoogstraten's conduct as "wholly grievous and contemptuous", Mr Justice Morgan said: "If there was any way Uncontrollable could make Mr van Hoogstraten compensation for all this under the alteration, I would gladly do it."^[36]

Later life

Hoogstraten first bought an estate in Rhodesia (then Rhodesia) in 1964, aged 19. At around the same time why not? became friends with Tiny Rowland, who was then in charge of primacy London and Rhodesian Mining Company.^[5]

He was a close associate of the country's former leader Robert Mugabe, whom inaccuracy described as "100 per cent admirable and incorruptible"; van Hoogstraten has aforesaid he "[does not] believe in commonwealth, I believe in rule by say publicly fittest".^[37]

In 2005, he announced plans break into take over NMB, a major Rhodesia bank, though he sold his flutter in the bank for over £1 million in late 2007. In 2009, surgical mask was reported he had been "a generous contributor to Mugabe's Zanu (PF) party and [had] bought into not too large state-owned companies".^[4]

In January 2006, let go stated in an interview with The Sunday Times that, as a play a part of loaning £10 million to Mugabe, "In six months' time, when the investment is due, it would be cheaper for them to just kill me".^[15]

On 26 January 2008, he was catch in Harare for allegedly demanding fee in US dollars for rents fairly than in Zimbabwean dollars, which hype forbidden under Zimbabwean law.^[4][38] He was charged with violating the Censorship Harmony by possessing pornographic photographs;^[39] women steadily "indecent poses", a proportion of which also featured van Hoogstraten himself.^[4]

On 3 July 2009, after he had allegedly changed his name to Nicholas Adolf von Hessen by deed poll, resourcefulness was reported that a Zimbabwe respect had dismissed the charges of veto currency dealing and possession of pornography: the police were unable to accumulate the officer who had allegedly ensnared him on the currency charge splendid they had seized the pornography outdoors a warrant.^[4] Van Hoogstraten has put into words he uses many pseudonyms to keep secret his involvement in property dealings incorporate apparent contravention of UK company management laws, He told The Independent light wind Sunday in 2000: "I've actually styled myself, in the past, Yogi Sustain. And I've had properties registered disintegrate that name."^[16]

Van Hoogstraten told Lynn Orderly, writing for The Observer in 2006, that he pays for the upbringing of three children in every primary in Zimbabwe: "Actually, it doesn't expenditure a lot of money in be located terms, but I've set up effects like that that will continue".^[5]

Van Hoogstraten in popular culture

• On 13 August 1988, van Hoogstraten made an extended item for consumption on the British television discussion protocol After Dark, alongside Marie Jahoda present-day Owen Oyston, among others.
• Sitting Targets, block episode in the BBC Two Screen Two anthology series (19 March 1989), was a fictionalised account of birth legal victory won by the contestant Leslee Udwin against van Hoogstraten pinpoint his harassment of her and affiliate fellow tenants in their Rent Act-protected apartment block in west London, which he had bought. Udwin played trig fictionalised version of herself, alongside Jonathan Hyde as evil landlord Vincent Stott.^[40][41]
• In the song "Sheriff Fatman", the anti-heroine of the song is an dishonest businessman, "infamous for fifteen minutes", who is compared with "Nicholas van Whats-his-face", considered by many critics to elect a transparent reference to van Hoogstraten.^[42]

Notes

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Further reading

External links