CPS News Centre

Criminal cases prosecuted by the CPS are in the news every day, along with a range of issues relating to our work – from violence against women and girls and hate crime, to support for victims and witnesses, statistics and speeches.

To ensure greater openness in the reporting of criminal proceedings, the CPS, the police and media representatives developed a joint protocol for working together.

Here you can find our latest news stories and search for others. You can also find additional details about a number of high-profile cases and the work of the CPS.

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Media enquiries

National, international and specialist media should contact the main 24-hour press office.

Local media should contact their Area Communications Manager during normal working hours.

Notice to Victims of the Lantian Gerui Fraud

The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has commenced civil recovery proceedings in respect of property which has been seized in the UK from Yadi Zhang (also known as Zhimin Qian) (Zhang) and Jian Wen (Wen), and additional assets.

22 October 2024 | Press Release , Fraud and economic crime, Proceeds of crime , CPS News

Heartless romance fraudster ordered to pay back over £30k

A romance fraudster who conned his victim into borrowing money and handing over her savings has been ordered to pay back over £32,000 of the stolen money.

08 October 2024 | Press Release , Proceeds of crime , CPS News

Treasure thief sentenced for five more years in jail for failing to pay back over £600,000 of criminal proceeds

A detectorist who stole an estimated £3m worth of Viking treasure has been sentenced to a further five years and three months in prison after failing to pay back over £600,000.

12 September 2024 | Press Release , Proceeds of crime , CPS News

People smuggler gets nearly a year extra time in jail for failing to payback over £65,000 of criminal profits in the Essex lorry deaths case

Today (11 July 2024) at Margate Magistrates’ Court, Gheorghe Nica, 46, was ordered to serve a further eleven and half months imprisonment after failing to payback £65,157.65 which he was ordered to pay in a proceeds of crime confiscation hearing.

11 July 2024 | Press Release , Proceeds of crime , CPS News

Drug dealer who sold deadly ‘weight loss pills’ pays back £23,000 in first Monero cryptocurrency payout

A British man convicted of selling a deadly substance that was falsely marketed as a ‘weight loss’ drug has been forced to hand over £23,000 that he made from his crime.

10 July 2024 | Press Release , Proceeds of crime , CPS News

Millionaire landlady jailed for Modern Slavery offences forced to pay £200k to victim

A landlady who was jailed for keeping a vulnerable woman in domestic servitude has had to sell a property to pay the victim back almost £200,000.

11 April 2024 | Press Release , Proceeds of crime , CPS News

Stephen Bear ordered to pay £22,305 Confiscation Order

Today at Chelmsford Crown Court, a Confiscation Order of £22,305 was given to Stephen Bear, to retrieve the ill-gotten gains he accumulated from publishing explicit content to a subscription site without the consent of those involved.

28 March 2024 | Press Release , Proceeds of crime , CPS News

£3.4 million Confiscation Order handed to money launderer

A convicted money launderer responsible for transporting illegal money to Dubai has been ordered to pay £3,496,778 through a Confiscation Order made by the court on 19 March 2024.

20 March 2024 | Press Release , Proceeds of crime , CPS News

Fraudster forced to pay back £1 million to victims

More than 200 people who were conned into buying useless investments have received payouts from the money recovered from the fraudster.

18 December 2023 | Press Release , Proceeds of crime, Fraud and economic crime , CPS News

Oxbridge fraudster gets another eight-years in jail for failing to pay back £2.7m court order

One of the five Oxbridge-educated fraudsters who lured wealthy individuals to invest in fake “green” projects is sentenced to an additional term of imprisonment for non-payment of his £2.7m Confiscation Order.

29 November 2023 | Press Release , Proceeds of crime, Fraud and economic crime , CPS News

Search CPS News

In-depth - a deeper look at high-profile cases and the work of the CPS

'You can trust me, I'm a police officer' couldn't be further from the truth
How 13 women's testimonies secured the fate of serial rapist David Carrick
How a criminal case works
From reporting to appeals - how a criminal case works, end-to-end.
How we make our decisions
How does the CPS make the decision to prosecute - or not?
Our criminal justice partners
We don't just work with the police - here's a look at our many partners within the criminal justice system.
Transforming our service to victims at the CPS
Being a victim of crime can be deeply traumatic, and for those who find themselves in the criminal justice system the process can feel overwhelming, unfamiliar, and incredibly challenging.

Articles and speeches

Read articles and speeches from the CPS on matters of relevance to the Criminal Justice System

Articles and Speeches

CPS Says

The CPS position on major issues in the news, our response to inaccuracies in media reports and our letters to the media.

CPS Says...

Contacts: National media

Please note that our Press Office is not able to deal with issues or queries from members of the public - these contact details are for accredited journalists ONLY. Do not call this number unless you a member of the press. For all general enquiries, please call the General Enquiries line: 020 3357 0899 or 020 3357 0000 (09:00-17:00, Monday-Friday) or visit contact.cps.gov.uk.

If you are a national or international journalist with a media enquiry, you can contact the CPS Press Office on 020 3357 0906 or email [email protected] (9am-5pm weekdays only).

For out-of-hours media enquiries please call 020 3357 0906 to reach the duty press officer.

Contacts: Local media

Cymru/Wales
Richard Paull
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 02920 803950

East Midlands
Graham Buchanan
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 0115 852 3343

East of England
Gillian Andrews
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 01245 455027

London (North and South)
Wendy Wyeth or Molly Barker
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 02380 673873

Mersey-Cheshire
Jackie Rand
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 0151 239 6334

North East
Chris Black
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 0191 260 4216

North West
Kerry Bell
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 0161 827 4705

South East
Cheryl Pendry
Email: [email protected]
Telephones: 01227 655862 / 07876 390054

South West
Gary Cockram
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 0117 930 2968

Thames and Chiltern
Angie Patton
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 01189 513625

Wessex
Wessex Communications
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 02380 673873

West Midlands
Kofo Baptist
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 0203 357 0625

Yorkshire and Humberside
Elizabeth Ogborn
Email: [email protected]
Telephones: 0113 290 2839 / 07500 835186

Our social media policy

If you follow us on social media, you can expect posts covering some or all of the following:

Operational updates on decisions to prosecute or take no further action;
Reactions and statements on trial outcomes;
Policy updates from the Director of Public Prosecutions and other prosecutors;
Updates on media appearances by CPS staff
Content that explains the role of the CPS and how we work
Highlighting of relevant work by our criminal justice partners and other stakeholders

We will aim to be fair and accurate in all the information we publish. We will aim to correct any inaccuracies as soon as possible.

We are unable to monitor social media round the clock. We are not able to engage with all those who seek a response from us due to resources but also due to privacy and the sensitive nature of some of our work. The best way to contact the CPS is through our website.

Please do not try to report crime using social media. To report crime, please call 101 or visit your local police station. In an emergency, always call 999.

If you follow us on social media we will not automatically follow you back. Being followed by us does not imply endorsement of any kind.

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