Four men have been arrested by the City of London Police force in connection with a £9m mortgage fraud against a major insurance company.
40 police officers have been involved in the operation in the South-East of England which has led to a number of co-ordinated searches on four houses, the business unit of a gaming company and a solicitor’s office. Police officers have seized documents from the sites searched. As a result of the raids police have arrested four men on charges of conspiracy to defraud.
Steve Head, detective chief superintendent at the City of London Police, says the move represents a significant step forward in what has been a complex investigation.
He says: “The size of the police operation was evidence of the scale of this suspected fraud. It is not just the lenders that are being hit by the fraudsters. Individuals are losing millions and millions of pounds through a range of mortgage frauds, with much of this money being paid into the coffers of criminal networks.”
He adds: “We have a number of significant investigations ongoing and as lenders and borrowers continue to scrutinise their finances I anticipate many more cases being referred to us in the near future. I would ask anyone who has fallen victim to mortgage fraud to contact the City of London Police. The more we know the more difficult we can make it for those committing this highly damaging crime.”
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has backed the City of London Police’s crackdown on mortgage fraud.
A spokesperson says: “The SRA works closely with police and other law enforcement organisations to tackle mortgage fraud. Since the start of 2009 the SRA has stepped up its work in relation to mortgage fraud, both through advice and warnings to the profession, and by increasing its detection and investigation resources to prevent, deter and tackle fraud.”
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