The Khan Condo Scam

Allegations of a multi-million-dollar fraud against a condo property manager have stunned members of his family who say they have no clue about his whereabouts.

“When I saw his picture (in the newspaper) I was shocked — shocked,” Salman Khan said in his first interview since the scandal broke. “Everything was going good. This is totally wrong.”

Khan is the oldest son of Manzoor Khan, president of Channel Property Management Ltd., who allegedly borrowed millions of dollars against at least nine buildings — in most cases without the boards’ approval — leaving potentially thousands of condo owners on the hook for the money.

The total misappropriation may exceed $20 million. Several buildings have filed civil suits against Channel and Khan. He is believed to have fled the country. Toronto police are investigating.

Some condo corporations allege Khan forged signatures and created fake meeting minutes to register a bylaw that allowed him to obtain loans without the board’s knowledge. The money was funnelled into a separate bank account.

The Star first reported http://www.thestar.com/news/article/1054140–property-manager-bilked-20m-in-condo-fraud-victims-claim the allegations last Thursday.

Until now, the family has declined to answer any questions.

Salman Khan says he doesn’t know where his father is.

“All I know is that he went to Bangladesh ’cause my mom wasn’t well. He likes to travel, he goes here and there. He even went for hajj (the pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia),” he said.

Salman, 29, said he has never worked or lived with his father.

Khan lived in a luxurious two-storey house on a corner lot in north Brampton where four video cameras monitor the premises. At least two of his children are still believed to be living there.

Salman lives in a run-down high-rise with unreliable elevators in the Kipling Ave. and Albion Rd. neighbourhood.

He owns and runs Super Shawarma Wrap at the Albion Centre with his wife, Jesmin.

On Monday, he appeared relaxed while preparing a chicken shawarma for a customer as he chatted with two Star reporters.

Salman said he last saw his father before he left Canada in mid-August and spoke to him on the phone Aug. 30. He would not say where his father was phoning from. “I don’t know nothing.”

“These are only allegations, the truth will come out,” Jesmin said.

Meanwhile, multiple sources have confirmed that Khan has two wives. They are both reportedly in Bangladesh while his five children are still in the Toronto area.

He has a son and daughter — Salman and Sharmin — from his first wife, and a daughter, Shabnam, and two sons, Asif and Akash, from his second wife.

Sharmin worked for her father at Channel, say former employees, while Asif runs a high-end clothing store in Woodbridge, just down the road from where Channel was evicted from its offices last week for not paying rent.

Even as rumours about Khan’s whereabouts swirl — he is believed to be either in his native Bangladesh, Malaysia or Dubai — the list of condominium corporations he allegedly defrauded is growing.

The condo board at 2121 Roche Ct. in Mississauga learned of alleged fraud in late August when the building’s property manager from Channel notified them of “financial irregularities.”

A title search revealed that $1.2 million was borrowed against the property on May 15, 2008.

Even more curious was that someone had been making monthly $15,000 payments on the loan.

A board member said $900,000 is still outstanding on the loan.

A new property management company is expected to take over in the next few weeks and call a residents’ meeting.

Jose Pedro has lived at the condo for the past four years. The retired electronics expert said he is eager for more information.

“It strikes me as very strange that this seems to have happened in 2008 and nobody noticed it until now,” he said.

Sobia Tahir learned of the allegations last week when an unsigned letter was slipped under the door of the two-bedroom suite she shares with her husband and three children.

“Everybody is worried about what will happen next,” she said.

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