Online orders lead to arrests

A major operation targeting online shopping fraudsters (Sep 24) has seen the City of London Police, which is the National Lead Force for fraud, arrest four people across the South East of England. 

The ‘Day of Action’ was triggered by the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) and a leading online shopping retailer working in tandem over the weekend to identify suspicious fraudulent orders submitted via the internet. 

This intelligence led detectives to three locations where they arrested three men, 29, 28 and 25, and one woman, 44, all on suspicion of fraud by false representation. 

Deliveries that included men's and women's designer clothes and a tom-tom were recovered and a number of other packages found at the properties were seized as evidence. The four suspects were later released on bail. 

In the run-up to the festive period the NFIB and British Retail Consortium (BRC) are focusing on the threat posed by online shopping fraud. 

Together they will be building intelligence packages that will help police officers pin-point the operations that are facilitating the criminality. 

Online shopping fraud is estimated to have cost the retail sector more than £200 million in the past year and is consistently one of the highest reported crimes to the NFIB, via Action Fraud.  

Director of the NFIB, Det Supt Dave Clark, said: 

“Criminals will always follow the money, which is why they are increasingly targeting a rapidly expanding market like online shopping. 

“At the best of times the retail sector could ill-afford to be losing millions of pounds to fraudsters, but in this very difficult economic climate it is putting people’s jobs and businesses on the line.  

“Today the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau and the retail sector have made a clear statement of intent, saying enough is enough. In a matter of days suspicious activity has been turned into quality intelligence which has led detectives to suspected fraudsters. This marks the first ‘Day of Action’ against online shopping, but it certainly won’t be the last.”