City of London Police this week arrested a man in the City on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud and money laundering.

The man is believed to be part of a group which allegedly set-up a ‘boiler room’ operation on Old Broad Street, EC2 which has allegedly been used to persuade people to invest in a non-existent crypto currency.

Detectives from the City of London Police’s Fraud Squad made the arrest at 6.30am yesterday (10 August) at the man’s home address in Oaktree Gardens, near Sidcup, south London

Police say the investigation began after reports were made to Action Fraud, the national fraud and cyber crime reporting service. So far, nine reports have been made to Action Fraud with a total loss to victims estimated to be £160,000.

Victims were cold called by salespeople who allegedly persuaded them to invest in a crypto currency which does not exist and is therefore worthless. Detectives have been in contact with the victims.

City of London Police Detective Inspector Mark Forster said: “Investment fraudsters are still targeting people throughout the country and they employ aggressive sales tactics which are often used to pressurise unsuspecting victims into parting with large sums of money.

“These people often base themselves in the City as they believe having an address in a prestigious financial district will help to legitimise their fraud.”