Crime and Policing

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) faces a possible multi-million pound legal bill after the High Court ruled today that the agency would not have opened an investigation into a Kazakh mining firm but for the wrongdoing of its officers.

https://www.cityam.com/uk-fraud-office-faces-hefty-bill-after-court-finds-wrongdoing-led-to-enrc-bribery-probe/

Six men and one woman have been arrested and charged after more than £1m was stolen from an elderly woman in Scotland.

It follows a cross-border investigation involving Police Scotland and policing partners in Essex, London and Eastbourne.

https://news.stv.tv/west-central/seven-arrested-and-charged-following-cross-border-investigation-into-theft-of-one-million-from-elderly-woman

A new strategy aimed at tackling the growing threat of serious and organised crime has been announced by the Home Secretary as the Government steps up action to clamp down on criminal gangs operating in and against the UK.

https://www.policeprofessional.com/news/new-strategy-launched-to-tackle-threat-of-serious-and-organised-crime/

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has said that hiring 150 new staff was its “top priority” as it looks to continue its turnaround under new boss Nick Ephgrave.

The recruitment drive is primarily for new investigators, forty of which will be junior agents, a spokesman said. This would take the number of investigators back to the 600 that its budget from the Treasury accommodates for.

City of London Police has launched a five-year national policing strategy for fraud, economic and cyber crime to help forces deliver a better service to victims.

It is the first time the national lead force for the three threat areas has produced a five-year plan, which builds on fraud and cybercrime being included in the strategic policing requirement earlier this year.

https://www.policeprofessional.com/news/five-year-plan-launched-to-tackle-fraud-economic-and-cyber-crime/

Today at the Old Bailey the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) secured the conviction of William Osmond, a solicitor, who disclosed confidential details about an investigation and forged a legal document in an attempt to mislead investigators.

Osmond, co-founder of a London-based commercial and property law firm Osmond & Osmond Solicitors Ltd, is the first ever solicitor the SFO has prosecuted with “tipping off” a client. Solicitors are legally obliged not to share details of money laundering investigations into their clients. Osmond was also the acting Money Laundering Reporting Officer for the firm, meaning he was expected to report any suspicions of money laundering to the authorities.

Victims of f​raud have recovered more than £3 million thanks to a specialist Hertfordshire team.

The award-winning Beacon Fraud Hub is run by Hertfordshire’s Victim Care Centre, which is staffed by professionals from the Constabulary’s Victim Service Team and Catch22, an independent organisation commissioned to support victims.

https://www.thecomet.net/news/23871822.3m-recovered-victims-fraud-hertfordshire/

The UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has unveiled a plan to ramp up the number of investigators and case workers by up to a third, which will enable it to deliver an increasing number of investigations and enforcement work.

https://www.pinsentmasons.com/en-gb/out-law/news/uk-fraud-agency-plans-uptick-in-enforcement-activity

The award-winning Beacon Fraud Hub is run by Hertfordshire’s Victim Care Centre, which is staffed by professionals from Hertfordshire Constabulary’s victim service team and Catch22, an independent organisation commissioned to support victims.

https://www.policeprofessional.com/news/3m-recovered-for-victims-of-fraud-with-help-of-specialist-hub/

The appointment of Nick Ephgrave as the new director of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) could be viewed as the beginning of a new era for the agency. If he introduces changes, they will have implications for the SFO – and for the corporate world the SFO has the task of policing.

https://www.financierworldwide.com/challenges-facing-the-new-director-of-the-uks-serious-fraud-office