Fraud and economic crime | The Crown Prosecution Service

Romance fraudster who scammed over £400,000 from victims jailed

A romance fraudster who conned 80 victims out of significant sums of money has today been jailed.

Fredrick Ugo Diji, 37, was sentenced to eight years' imprisonment at Guildford Crown Court on 23 December 2022 after he admitted conspiracy to defraud, concealing criminal property and possession of an identity document for improper means.

Co-defendant Raquel Janice Johnson, 43, who lived with Diji in Lambeth, South London, appeared alongside him in court and was sentenced to three years and nine months imprisonment after admitting one count of money laundering.

Sentence Update: Former Premier League star jailed for £15 million investment fraud

A former Premier League star has been jailed today (12 January 2023) for defrauding friends, family members and associates out of £15 million.

Richard Rufus, 47, has been found guilty at Southwark Crown Court of fraud, money laundering and carrying out a regulated activity without authorisation and sentenced to seven and half years imprisonment.

Gang of three men sentenced for stealing valuable stone from historic buildings

An organised gang of three men have been sentenced for stealing thousands of pounds of valuable York stone from historic sites.

UPDATE: Three city workers sentenced in a $8.45m hedge and wealth fund fraud

Three fund managers have been sentenced today (20 February 2023) for a large-scale fraud which amounted to losses of $8.45 million which were meant for the people of Libya at Southwark Crown Court.

Updated with sentence: Road haulage operators jailed for involvement in an over £30m money laundering scam

Six defendants including a senior manager and two drivers of a road haulage business have been imprisoned on Friday 6 January 2023 of running a large-scale money laundering operation involving in excess of £30 million in cash

DPP Max Hill's speech to the Cambridge Symposium on Economic Crime

Economic crime poses a threat to countries’ economies and institutions and causes serious harm to society and individuals. Tackling it is a priority for the Crown Prosecution Service of England and Wales – and last year we published our first ever CPS Economic Crime Strategy.

Sentence Update: Fraudsters sentenced for £21m loss in cryptocurrency

Four offenders were sentenced today (13 January 2023) for fraudulently obtaining and laundering Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency worth tens of millions of pounds from an Australia-based cryptocurrency exchange.

Max Hill QC's opening speech to the Heads of Prosecuting Agencies Conference

Good morning, and welcome – to London and to this Heads of Prosecuting Agencies Conference. What a pleasure it is to be together in-person again after three years, and we are delighted to be hosting you all here.

CPS responds to changing nature of serious economic and organised crime with a new team

The Crown Prosecution Service is today launching a united team to tackle the changing nature of serious and organised crime.

CPS launches ambitious plan to combat economic crime

The first ever CPS Economic Crime strategy sets out an ambitious plan to combat these offences which are estimated to cost billions each year.

Subscribe to Fraud and economic crime

Accessibility controls