Proactive Economic Crime Team

During a cash-based operation at a local airport, the PECT identified two Bulgarian nationals who were carrying a large amount of cash and two brand new boxed mobile telephones. Upon questioning them, their stories regarding the provenance of the cash kept changing, which raised suspicions. They said the mobile telephones were presents for family members in Bulgaria but the paperwork showed they had been taken out on a monthly contract, which seemed unusual. With a large amount of unexplained cash, and some high value goods the PECT seized the assets and commenced a money laundering investigation.

Operation Deadpan was the disruption of an organised and sophisticated boiler room which fraudulently opened bank accounts to assist other criminals in laundering their criminal proceeds and commit fraud. Whilst assisting a local force with an arrest and search of an address in Manchester, the PECT found over 250 smart phones inside a cupboard along with a charging set up capable of charging a large selection of phones at a time. Once it was clarified that this was not part of the originating investigation, the PECT took responsibility.

With support of the wider SWROCU, we proactively examined every phone, which showed that these phones were solely being used to facilitate the setup of fraudulent bank accounts. As a result of examining the phones and individuals involved, over 2,500 bank accounts were identified and seven bank accounts containing over £60,000 were frozen and forfeited using POCA account freezing powers.

This was a fast moving, disruption led investigation which shut down a large-scale operation that a local police force would not have had capacity to deal with and took the criminal proceeds out of the hands of the criminals.

During an operation at Bristol Airport where the PECT worked closely with Border Force, multiple sums of cash were seized from various travellers en-route to Bulgaria and Poland. The individuals were investigated to determine the legitimacy of the cash in a multiagency approach alongside HMRC, and police forces in the respective countries. One individual who was travelling to Poland was suspected of money laundering and exploiting a vulnerable person, to which safeguarding was implemented and referrals eventually made to HMRC for identified tax evasion offences.

Op Diffendo is an investigation into a persistent offender of fraud by false representation, who utilises romance fraud and fake designer goods to portray a high net worth to victims. Historically, offences by the suspect had taken place across the country so investigation of the suspect’s finances allowed for a reliable picture of their everyday spending to identify where they were living as well as identifying further victims.

A warrant was successfully executed at the suspect’s address, where they were arrested and many evidential exhibits seized, as well as an even greater number of exhibits relating to an existing confiscation case. Work with partner agencies, such as the Department for Work and Pensions, identified further offences and ongoing monitoring and action is still taking place to prevent further victims being defrauded.

Operation Grounded is an investigation conducted by the PECT into a series of Romance Frauds committed since 2022 until 2024 by an individual who lives in Dorset, with the victims being from across the UK. The suspect would meet females on dating website apps and other social media and then persuade them to loan him sums of money for supposed emergencies or other urgent circumstances, which were never paid back – in the majority of the cases the funds obtained from the victims were found to have been gained by a false representation. Further victims have been identified and safeguarded as the investigation progressed and the suspect was interviewed in 2024 and awaits prosecution.

In December 2023, the PECT acted on intelligence that revealed concerns around a bank account held by a Saudi Arabian national who was a student in the UK. This report told Police that the account in question had received several high value cash deposits, totalling more than £44,000, in a six-month period. The PECT made a POCA account freeing order application and secured the funds to investigate them further.

The subject was eventually located in Saudi Arabia, and through two meetings with them and their legal teams the PECT have been able to gain accounts from them regarding their financial activity in the UK. Partnership working with various agencies is ongoing to establish the derivation of the funds.

It is currently looking likely that the forfeiture of the funds will be applied for as they are suspected to have come from criminality.

The PECT were alerted to potential victims of fraud in the South West during an investigation in the West Yorkshire police area.

The PECT undertook immediate safeguarding visits on vulnerable people within the South West who were believed to have been victims of courier fraud. This work identified an 86-year-old who had been persuaded to hand over her phone and her bank cards, believing she was aiding the police in an investigation.

Alongside safeguarding and advice on reclaiming her money from the bank, multiple statements were taken from the victim and her daughter. This work assisted in securing a conviction for the suspect who had made the phone calls. He pleaded guilty to 14 counts of fraud and was given a five-year prison sentence.