Birmingham man convicted of providing false statements to SIA

Mr Ahroon submitted a fabricated character reference from a Birmingham food bank as part of his appeal against the Security Industry Authority’s decision to refuse his application for a door supervisor licence due to his past criminality. 

The SIA investigated the validity of this reference, speaking to multiple senior staff within the food bank who confirmed they did not know Mr Ahroon and had not provided him with a reference. 

Mr Ahroon appeared at Birmingham Magistrates’ Court on 13 May 2025 and pleaded guilty at the earliest possible opportunity. The court fined him £80 and ordered him to pay both a £32 victim surcharge and £500 of prosecution costs.

Dave McCall, SIA Criminal Investigations Officer, said: 

The SIA’s licensing regime is put in place to ensure door supervisors are trained and committed to protecting the public, but that regime is built on the foundation that people present truthful information. 

In producing this false character reference, Alam Ahroon undermined those foundations and sought to put the public at risk. I am happy to see justice delivered in this case.

Background

By law, security operatives working under contract must hold and display a valid SIA licence. Information about SIA enforcement and penalties can be found on GOV.UK/SIA.  

The offence relating to the Private Security Industry Act 2001 that is mentioned above is:  

• Section 22 – making any statement to the Authority which is known to be false in a material particular 

The SIA is the organisation responsible for regulating the private security industry in the UK, reporting to the Home Secretary under the terms of the Private Security Industry Act 2001. The SIA’s main duties are the compulsory licensing of individuals undertaking designated activities and managing the voluntary Approved Contractor Scheme (ACS).

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