Compiled by Faras Baloch, Andrew Herd & Francesca Kirby.
Cases
Nothing of note.
Sentencing & Confiscation
Richardson [2024] EWCA Crim 1286: Fraudulent Evasion of VAT. Legitimate but undeclared profits may amount to “criminal property” for the purposes of Pt 7 POCA.
Bills, Statutes & Sis
Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (Application of Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984) (Amendment No. 2) Order 2024 (SI 2024/1029) Search & seizure warrants. Ensures that s.22 PACE applies to retention of property for forensic examination as part of crypto asset investigation. In force 6 Nov 24.
Magistrates' Court (Conversion of Cryptoassets) Rules 2024 (SI 2024/1040) Procedure for applications to a Mags Ct for orders under Chap. 3F of Pt 5 POCA (conversion of crypto assets into money & detention/ freezing/ forfeiture of converted crypto assets). In force 7 Nov 24.
Magistrates' Courts (Detention, Freezing and Forfeiture of Cryptoassets, and Miscellaneous Amendments) Rules 2024 (SI 2024/1043) Procedure / provision of docs in proceedings under Chap 3C, 3D & 3E Pt 5 POCA (seizure/ detention of crypto assets). In force 7 Nov 2024.
Investigatory Powers (Amendment) Act 2024 (Commencement No 1 and Transitional Provisions) Regulations (SI 2024/1021) bring into force several provisions of the Investigatory Powers (Amendment) Act 2024 concerning, inter alia, bulk personal datasets and third-party bulk personal datasets, oversight arrangements, communications data, notices and safeguards, including in relation to confidential journalistic material. In force 14 Oct 24.
Payment Services (Amendment) Regulations 2004 (SI 2024/1013) enable payment service providers to delay crediting of payee account where reasonable grounds to suspect fraud/ dishonesty. In force 30 Oct 24.
Guidance, Reports & Consultations
Illegal donations: how does dark money get into UK politics? TBIJ: 9 Oct 24
Guidance on the information sharing measures in the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 Gov.uk: 4 Oct 24
Half Year Fraud Report £570m stolen in payment fraud; £710m fraud prevented: UK Finance: 17 Oct 24
Companies House Enforcement Policy CoHo: 27 Sep 24
News
Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry: Recordings, transcripts, reports, evidence and key documents etc available on the POHITI website.
Top City tax barrister charged with tax evasion Yahoo Finance: 28 Oct 24
Major new crackdown on insurance fraud Gov.uk: 25 Oct 24
Cheesemakers in shock as £300,000 of produce stolen in sophisticated scam Guard: 25 Oct 24
Sanjeev Gupta: Steel tycoon faces criminal charges over missing accounts for 76 firms City AM: 10 Oct 24
UK launches world-first bank transfer fraud refund scheme City AM: 7 Oct 24
Met officers allegedly took hampers and cash bribes to help Fayed persecute staff Guard: 4 Oct 24
Wealthy socialite 'laundered £200m of crime cash BBC: 3 Oct 24
Former solicitor Shiner pleads guilty to fraud over Iraq claims Law. Soc. Gaz: 1 Oct 24
Action Fraud: stay safe online after £1.4 million lost from email and social media account hacking in the last year Action Fraud: 1 Oct 24
SFO
Changes to reporting fraud to the SFO SFO: 28 Oct 24
‘I can grant immunity from prosecution’: UK’s chief fraudbuster on modernising the SFO Guard: 22 Oct 24
Serious Fraud Office probe £112m Unite union hotel BBC: 21 Oct 24
Cyrus Ahsani cooperating with Australian bribery probe GIR [paywall]: 15 Oct 24 / Ahsani clan discreetly resurfaces in London after SFO probes into Unaoil Intelligence Online [paywall]: 16 Oct 24
Glencore's ex-head of oil faces 2027 trial in UK court on bribery charges Reuters: 9 Oct 24
SFO takes Ultra Electronics investigation global GIR [paywall]: 8 Oct 24
SFO and mining firm ENRC agree settlement over legal claims Guard: 8 Oct 24
SFO recovers further £295,000 from convicted fraudster’s hidden pensions SFO: 5 Oct 24
Libor: After more than 50 years, tainted benchmark is officially no more City AM: 1 Oct 24
CPS
CPS offers pleas to Entain suspects ahead of charging decisions City AM: 4 Oct 24
FCA
FCA fines individual £350k for failing to notify about tax issues FT Advisor: 28 Oct 24
FCA cracks down on illegal finfluencers FCA: 22 Oct 24
FCA begins criminal proceedings against two individuals for insider dealing FCA: 3 Oct 24
FCA fines Starling Bank £29m for failings in their financial crime systems and controls FCA: 2 Oct 24
Insolvency Service
NCA
'Britain's FBI' would help with Operation Branchform investigation as SNP finance probe lurches on Scot. Daily Express: 24 Oct 24
Further Evil Corp cyber criminals exposed, one unmasked as LockBit affiliate NCA: 1 Oct 24
EU
German, Serbian Authorities Bust €300M Investment Scam OCCRP: 24 Oct 24
Europe markets watchdog bids to become EU’s version of SEC stockwatch: 22 Oct 24
US
FTX’s Nishad Singh gets no jail time, 3 years supervised release for role in crypto fraud CNBC: 30 Oct 24
Whisleblowers shouldn’t “self-select” out of DOJ’s new programme GIR [paywall] 24 Oct 24. DOJ Corporate Whistleblower Awards Pilot Program DOJ: 1 Aug 24
Raytheon Company to Pay Over $950M in Connection with Defective Pricing, Foreign Bribery, and Export Control Schemes DOJ: 16 Oct 24
TD Bank Pleads Guilty to Bank Secrecy Act and Money Laundering Conspiracy Violations in $1.8B Resolution DOJ: 10 Oct 24
Beyond
Trafigura warns of potential $1.1 billion hit from fraud in Mongolia Reuters: 30 Oct 24
Peru’s former president sentenced to more than 20 years in prison in corruption case linked to Odebrecht scandal ICIJ: 29 Oct 24
Iraq’s Dollar Auction: The ‘Monster’ Funnelling Billions to Fraudsters and Militants Through the U.S. Federal Reserve OCCRP: 8 Oct 24
The Global Oil Bribery Scheme Caught on Tape Bloomberg Originals (Vitol/ Ecuador) Youtube/ Bloomberg: 24 Sep 24