The boss of a London firm that won £40m in government Covid contracts sexually assaulted three female employees, openDemocracy can reveal.
Mohammed Kashif Khokhar, known as Kash, is still the CEO of KAU Media Group – despite being found guilty of multiple counts of sexual assault against employees in November. The case has not been reported on until now.
After his arrest in February 2021, Khokhar continued to attend boozy work events, including a work trip to Las Vegas to “celebrate our success throughout the year”, according to posts on the company’s Instagram account. And just weeks after he was eventually found guilty last year, he was pictured at KAU’s Christmas party.
One of the women who Khokhar was convicted of assaulting told openDemocracy she was “disgusted” he had been allowed to continue in his role as CEO and urged the company to “take some responsibility for your staff's safety”.
Khokhar’s conviction comes after an openDemocracy investigation previously revealed that KAU made its staff work “flat out” when they were meant to be furloughed during the pandemic – and threatened to fire anyone who spoke out.
In an audio recording obtained by openDemocracy, Khokhar could be heard saying: “If someone makes accusations… or fucking reporting to HMRC, they can go fuck themselves.”
The threats came as the government handed the company a series of multi-million-pound contracts to deliver personal protective equipment (PPE). The deals were awarded without competitive tender, despite the digital marketing firm having no prior experience in making PPE.
Khokhar quickly channelled off £10m for himself and his wife – and boasted about his expensive lifestyle on social media. He posted photos of himself wearing a £130,000 watch in a Lamborghini sports car and watching England play football at Wembley in the European Championships.
Now, court documents seen by openDemocracy set out a catalogue of abuse allegations from six women spanning several years. Khokhar was found guilty on four counts of assault against three women and acquitted on other charges.
The woman openDemocracy spoke with, whose identity cannot be revealed for legal reasons, said the trial had been gruelling, with Khokhar’s lawyers “trying to make us out like we are terrible, completely unbelievable people”.
She added: “It was a full character assassination for every one of us.”
“I was terrified afterwards,” she said. “But the whole reason I did it was to protect the other women who work for him.”
The court heard how the work culture at KAU Media Group revolved around lavish parties, where Khokhar would allegedly share cocaine with employees. According to court records, he told police that he would spend thousands of pounds of his own money at the events, adding: “We’re a social media agency. Everyone parties together.”
He added that many of the allegations against him were “bollocks”, claiming: “They see me as this millionaire… and they see someone who’s a target to take down.”
Earlier this month, the 43-year-old put his five-bedroom London home – which boasts a cinema room, jacuzzi and blue LED lights in the lounge – on the market for £2.2m, according to listings on property websites.
Khokhar was sentenced to 16 months’ imprisonment, suspended for two years. He was also ordered to complete 80 hours of unpaid work, complete 40 Rehabilitation Activity Requirement days, and pay £2,000 in compensation to each of the three victims, as well as £9,000 in prosecution costs.
But the sexual assault convictions have not stopped Khokhar from continuing in his role at KAU Media Group, which describes him as “a highly acclaimed CEO”.
The woman openDemocracy spoke with said: “He was found guilty of sexual assault and he's still just carrying on like usual. Nothing has changed.”
She called on the company to “take some responsibility for your staff's safety”, adding: “I just want people to know so they can make an informed decision when they're choosing to work with someone, to know what type of person they are.”
Meanwhile, no action appears to have been taken against KAU over the furlough support it received. This is despite former staff lodging at least two complaints with HMRC that outlined all the available evidence, and offering to help with any investigation.
Under the furlough scheme, the government funded 80% of the salaries of people who could no longer work their usual jobs due to the Covid restrictions. Companies were not allowed to claim the financial support for anyone working, with the initial rules saying that all furloughed staff must be “instructed by the employer to cease all work”.
But evidence seen by openDemocracy – including payslips, emails, WhatsApp messages and audio recordings – showed that staff at KAU were expected to continue working while on furlough.
In an audio recording, Khokhar warned employees that anyone who spoke out would be “removed from the business”, saying: “There should be a level of fear.”
When openDemocracy published its initial investigation in 2021, Khokhar responded saying there was no “intention of fraud” by the company. But he admitted his workers were asked to be “reactive” to clients while they were on furlough. He also confirmed that staff had never been repaid for reduced wages, but said that funds had been repaid to HMRC.
Yesterday, a spokesperson for the company said: “Furlough monies received by KAU Media Group Ltd were repaid in full to HMRC pro-actively without any prompt in June 2020. In recognition of KMG’s transparency, no further action was deemed necessary by HMRC.”
In a statement, Khokhar said that he maintained his innocence in the sexual assault case, despite the guilty verdict, claiming there were unspecified failings in the police investigation against him.
“I now look to put this difficult period behind me and move forward to the future, and to building upon the successes of KAU Media Group Ltd and its clients,” Khokhar said.
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