Two men have been charged in connection with alleged £2m fraudulent banking schemes in Glasgow and Manchester. The pair, aged 36 and 45, were charged and will appear at Glasgow Sheriff Court at a later date.
The pair were arrested as part of a huge nationwide crackdown on fraud led by the City of London Police and the National Economic Crime Centre which has resulted in 438 arrests and the seizure of £19m.
The two bank fraud arrests were part of a Police Scotland investigation into several frauds, with victims reporting information being used to bypass bank security to access their accounts. The total value of the frauds being investigated is about £2 million, police said. The two arrests were part of an inquiry with Greater Manchester Police.
The third part of the investigation, Operation Henhouse, ran through February and March this year. It resulted in account freezing orders of £5.1m and seizures of cash and assets worth £13.9m.
Fraud is currently the most common crime type reported in the Crime Survey of England and Wales. It accounts for approximately 40 percent of all crime reports, and costs an estimated £6.8bn each year in England and Wales alone.
The action involved all UK police forces and Regional Organised Crime Units, alongside national agencies including the Financial Conduct Authority, National Crime Agency, Serious Fraud Office and National Trading Standards.
Substantial law enforcement activity was carried out by individual forces and agencies across the UK. The North West Regional Organised Crime Unit made over 90 interventions, including freezing bank accounts, to disrupt suspected fraud being carried out by organised crime groups.
High value seizures included an £80,000 Porsche by Lancashire Police, a £70,000 BMW by the North West Regional Organised Crime Unit, and a £15,000 Rolex watch, alongside $33,200 (USD), £15,750 and a large quantity of high value designer clothing by the South East Regional Organised Crime Unit.
Merseyside Police arrested 10 individuals, executed 12 search warrants, seized £548k in cash, and issued five Account Freezing Orders amounting to £287k. Several National Crime Agency investigations, many of which involve its Complex Financial Crime Teams, are ongoing.
As part of the action, the National Crime Agency (NCA) worked closely to assist and bolster work led by partners. This included support provided to the Serious Fraud Office on their investigation into Signature Group, a business that attracted over a thousand UK and international investors in the redevelopment of iconic landmarks.
In February the Serious Fraud Office raided three residences and made four arrests in Greater Manchester and Merseyside as part of an investigation into a once vast property company. The SFO is probing the collapsed Signature Group in relation to a suspected £140 million fraud, involving 1,000 investors from around the world.
The Signature Group operated for over seven years, buying up predominantly historic buildings within the UK for redevelopment into luxury hotels, residential apartments and office spaces.
Adrian Searle, Director of the National Economic Crime Centre (NECC) in the NCA, said: “Henhouse is proof of what policing and wider law enforcement across the UK can achieve when we come together. The emotional harm that fraud causes is immense, and many of those targeted are faced with devastating and life changing losses.
“Fraud investigations take place all year round, but campaigns like Henhouse not only demonstrate how far we will go to pursue those who commit fraud, but also how successful we can be when we work closely with our partners across the country.
“This partnership also extends to working evermore closely with international counterparts and the private sector to target the fraud threat emanating from overseas, and fraud enabling technologies and infrastructure. This activity on a number of fronts will significantly impact the fraud threat.”
Security Minister Tom Tugendhat said: "Fraud destroys lives. Operations like Henhouse are absolutely vital to crack down on fraudsters and stop them profiteering off of our family, friends, and neighbours. Our approach is working. Fraud is already down 13% in England and Wales. This government is determined to continue our efforts to bring fraudsters to justice and protect the public.”
If you have fallen victim to fraud or cyber crime, report it any time at www.actionfraud.police.uk. Visit stopthinkfraud.campaign.gov.uk for more information.
