A MAN who ran lap-dancing clubs in Halifax and Huddersfield has denied deception and money-laundering charges.

Thirty-six-year-old businessman Mohammed Reza Shahsavar, who also operated two bars in Halifax, is due to stand trial on the allegations in September.

The charges relate to more than £½m.

He was arrested when police in Huddersfield staged a late-night raid on the La Salsa club at Beast Market.

Shahsavar, of Moor End Road, Pellon, Halifax, appeared before Bradford Crown Court yesterday and pleaded not guilty to obtaining a money transfer by deception relating to a mortgage application for almost £80,000 back in December 2004.

The charge alleges that he failed to disclose on the application form that his claim for asylum in the United Kingdom had been unsuccessful and he was subject to a prohibition from working or engaging in a business or profession.