Government review of Horizon IT system failure launched

The Government has launched a review into the failings of the Fujitsu Horizon IT system that caused Post Office Branch Managers to be falsely accused of fraud. More than 550 Post Office Branch Managers, known as Sub-Postmasters, brought legal action against the Post Office after being wrongly accused of fraud and other offences.   The […]

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Embezzlement – The impact on a family business

A retired accounts worker has been jailed for stealing more than £400,000 over nine years from the brewery where she was employed. Lesley Freestone had worked for the family-owned St Austell Brewery for more than 40 years, rising to the position of Purchase Ledger Supervisor by the time she retired. It is believed that the […]

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Cash as a clue

A recent case in Yorkshire shows the importance of cash as a clue in forensic investigations. People with large amounts of cash who cannot give a realistic reason for its source may be suspected of having criminal intent. In a recent case, a driver was stopped by police on the M1 and, when the vehicle […]

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The ‘Azerbaijani Laundromat’

The Evening Standard has recently won a case allowing it to view previously undisclosed documents in the ‘Azerbaijani Laundromat’ case but is not allowed to name the couple at the centre of the allegations. The National Crime Agency (NCA) had submitted confidential papers to the court detailing the alleged activities of a husband and wife […]

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“Individual measures” taken in Vatican forensic investigation

The Holy See has announced that ‘individual measures’ have been taken against officials in a financial investigation that has been ongoing in its secretariat for months. Vatican prosecutors are continuing their investigation into suspicious financial transactions and investments that were launched last year. One lay secretariat official, Fabrizio Tirabassi, was suspended in October 2019 following […]

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Valuing a ‘mothballed’ business

Even if the country, if not the world, appears to be in stasis, life goes on as before at a granular level; babies are born, birthdays are celebrated and couples split up. As many of us know from personal experience, the pandemic has cut across many activities – people have had to amend or shelve […]

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Forensic investigation opens ‘can of worms’ for Lookers

Motor sales group Lookers, which has been undertaking financial investigations since March, has now revealed that alleged fraud in the company could cost it £4 million. A recent statement from the firm said that the investigation had identified ‘potential fraudulent transactions’ in one of its operating divisions, which will result in “a one-off, non-cash charge, […]

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Met Police cuts two-thirds of its financial investigation officers as fraud soars during the Covid-19 crisis

A new Freedom of Information request has revealed that the Metropolitan Police has cut the number of financial officers it employs from 91 to just 30 in the last decade, despite a rise in scams. This means that Britain’s largest police force, which often deals with international crime and supports cases across the UK, has […]

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Divorce rates likely to rise following Coronavirus outbreak

With thousands of married couples and civil partners forced to spend more time with each other, without the ability to go out and see friends and family, divorce rates are likely to rise in the coming weeks and months according to a leading family practitioner. Baroness Shackleton of Belgravia told peers in the House of […]

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Businesses and individuals need to take care of Coronavirus fraud

The Government has issued a warning to members of the public and businesses about the potential for fraud related to Coronavirus. Police forces, local authorities and organisations across the UK are being inundated with information from companies and individuals about potential scams that are being operated by fraudsters relying on the panic caused by the […]

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Corrupt Uzbek ‘Princess’ prison sentence extended

Uzbekistan’s Supreme Court has announced that the daughter of the country’s late president, Islam Karimov, will serve a further eight years in prison for corruption and criminal activities estimated to have cost the country a total of more than $2.3 billion. Gulnara Karimova has been found guilty on charges including extortion, racketeering, money laundering and […]

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Investigating governance at the National Citizenship Service Trust

The Big Society organisation, of which former Prime Minister David Cameron is chief patron, is being investigated for the mismanagement of millions of pounds at the National Citizenship Service Trust (NCST). The investigation in to “governance issues” at the Trust is being carried out by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), which […]

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Lessons from the pitch: UEFA vs Manchester City FC

An ongoing financial dispute between UEFA and Manchester City FC, which has seen the football club banned from competing in the Champions League for two years and fined £25m, could lead to further investigations according to UEFA. Manchester City FC is facing an ongoing battle with UEFA under the financial fair play (FFP) rules relating […]

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US case against former Autonomy CEO Mike Lynch

Dr Mike Lynch founded UK firm Autonomy in 1996 with three partners as a spin-off from Cambridge Neurodynamics, a firm specialising in computer-based fingerprint recognition. In 2011, Autonomy was sold to Hewlett Packard (HP) but the US firm swiftly brought a criminal case in the US and a £3.8 billion civil fraud case in the […]

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Could shell companies become more transparent?

Shell companies have long been the vehicles for hiding assets, being based in tax havens such as the British Virgin Islands (BVI), which are notoriously difficult to investigate. However, the Government is committed to publishing a register of the true owners of overseas entities that hold UK property. Kelly Tolhurst, Minister for Small Business, who […]

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One forensic investigation leading to another

In this week’s Silent Witness, the forensic scientists try to find out what happened to a family’s money in the 30 years between a man’s death and the present day. Unsurprisingly, they bring in other forensic experts, of the financial variety, to help them uncover the truth. When used as an adjective, the word forensic […]

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The ‘Luanda Leaks’ investigation

The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), made up of reporters from the Guardian and publications in 20 other countries, recently revealed the findings of their investigation into Isabel dos Santos, known as the ‘Luanda Leaks’. The results of the seven-month forensic investigation suggest that Ms dos Santos, otherwise known as ‘The Princess’ amassed her […]

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Forensic investigation leads to arrest at Glasgow College

A woman has been arrested and charged following a forensic investigation into an alleged embezzlement at one of the UK’s largest colleges. Forensic investigators were called in to Glasgow College in summer 2019 to conduct an internal investigation after concerns over financial mismanagement were raised. The woman was suspended when suspicions first came to light, […]

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Most London Capital & Finance investors will get no compensation

The majority of individuals who invested in London Capital and Finance’s (LCF) mini-bond scheme will get no compensation, according to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). The FSCS has delivered its verdict on whether LCF investors are eligible for compensation after the investment scheme collapsed at the start of last year. Almost 12,000 people, many […]

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Offshore accounts trawled in murder enquiry

Detectives investigating the suspected murder of a vulnerable woman in Scotland have turned to the Isle of Man’s Financial Intelligence Unit (IoM FIU) in a bid to find her. Carers for Margaret Fleming, who was last seen alive between December 1999 and January 2000, claimed that Margaret was involved in organised crime in Romania. However, […]

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Probe launched into Football Association of Ireland

An independent report into the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) is to be referred to An Garda Síochána, the police service of the Republic of Ireland. An investigation into four officials of the FAI has been launched after a forensic audit of the FAI’s accounts suggested financial impropriety. The investigation follows revelations earlier this year […]

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Assets seized following ‘dirty money’ investigation

More than £190 million of assets have been seized from a Pakistani businessman after a settlement in a so-called ‘dirty money’ investigation. The settlement is the result of an investigation by the National Crime Agency (NCA) into Malik Riaz Hussain, a Pakistani national, whose business is one of the biggest private-sector employers in Pakistan. NCA […]

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Jailed for stealing from the firm

An office manager who committed fraud and spent her stolen money on designer clothes, expensive holidays, private education and a villa in Spain has been jailed for four and a half years. Susan Anderson siphoned off money from her employer for almost a decade, using a company card to buy handbags and accessories and stealing […]

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Not just bank statements

Police investigating an alleged international money laundering gang have made a series of arrests in London. In total, 10 suspects were arrested for allegedly being part of ‘a well-orchestrated conspiracy’ to launder an estimated £15.5 million made through Class A drugs and organised immigration crime, transferring it from the UK to Dubai over the last […]

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When the evidence stacks up

Sheffield Wednesday FC has been charged with breaching EFL (English Football League) rules around financial fair play over the sale of the Hillsborough ground, following an investigation earlier this year. According to a statement from the League, a large number of documents obtained from the club, as part of the investigation, have been reviewed and […]

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