Two arrested after victims coerced into handing over £200k in fake celebrity romance fraud

Two people were arrested this month as part of a romance fraud investigation that involved numerous victims dropping off large quantities of cash to the back-room of a souvenir shop on Oxford Street, central London.

According to reports, victims would be directed to go to an office that was sub-let, separate from the main shop, and deposit large quantities of cash where they were told it would be sent to a well-known celebrity with whom they believed they were in a relationship. The location given was a backroom of a souvenir shop on Oxford Street, one of the busiest shopping districts in London.

In one instance, a victim dropped off in excess of £60,000 in cash.

The warrant was carried out by the London Regional Proactive Economic Crime Team (PECT), after a flurry of reports from victims came through via Action Fraud’s self-reporting system.

Detective Inspector Steve Weller, Specialist Operations, City of London Police said:

“The London PECT is focused on disrupting economic crime, and these arrests are a strong example of that work in action.

“Romance fraud is one of the most deplorable and cruel crimes.  Not only does the victim suffer significant financial loss, they also suffer the emotional torment of a love lost.  In many cases, the victims do not disclose the offences committed against them.  Romance fraud is often linked to serious organised crime and these arrests mark a significant step in preventing wider harm.

“This is a heartless crime, and we urge the public to stay vigilant. Talk to friends, family and support organisations, and never send money to someone you’ve only met online, especially if you haven’t met them in person. If you are being encouraged to buy or invest in cryptocurrency, do your research and seek advice. Never hand over cash or property in exchange for cryptocurrency”.

The London team operating from the City of London Police, is part of a National network, who work in partnership to target economic crime.  In this instance, multiple PECTs collaborated to identify similar offending patterns, centred on a London premises.

At this stage, the investigation is still ongoing and no charges have been brought forward against the two people arrested, both of whom were released under investigation. As well as the arrests, over £100k was seized in cryptocurrency.

The warrant falls under the umbrella of Operation Henhouse – a nationwide month-long intensification on fraud - that is funded by the National Crime Agency’s National Economic Crime Centre and coordinated via the City of London Police’s Lead Force Operations Room (LFOR), assisted by the Intelligence Development Team (IDT).

The arrests came in the lead up to Valentines Day, one of the busiest periods in the year for reporting romance fraud. In 2024, more than £99.4 million was lost by victims reporting to Action Fraud, with February being the month with the highest financial losses in the calendar year. 

Advice on romance fraud is available on the Action Fraud Website at Romance fraud | Action Fraud.

How to stay safe from romance fraudsters:

• If you have met someone via a dating app, stay within the messaging function of the application. Don’t feel pressured to hand over your mobile number or move the conversation over to SMS or a messaging platform like Whatsapp or Telegram.
• Be suspicious of any requests for money from someone you have never met in person.
• Be cautious about how much personal information you are sharing online and with whom you are sharing information.
• Speak to your family or friends to get advice and perspective. Fraudsters will subtly isolate you for their own purposes.
• Profile photos may not be genuine. Performing a reverse image search can find photos that have been taken from somewhere, or someone, else.