Source: City Of London Police published on this website Thursday 9 April 2026 by Jill Powell

Victims of investment fraud lost an average of £1,675 every minute last year, new figures from the City of London Police, the National Lead Force for Fraud, have revealed.

Criminals stole £879.8 million through investment fraud last year - an average of £2.4 million a day. 

In 2025, 34,673 people reported investment fraud to Report Fraud, the national service that replaced Action Fraud in December 2025. This marks a 31 per cent rise on the previous year, with officers warning that fraudsters are taking advantage of economic uncertainty, volatile markets and increasingly convincing online platforms to lure in victims.

The rise in reporting is not only linked to an increase in investment fraud, but also due to the point at which victims realise what has happened. Reports began climbing steadily from March and spiked in July and September when many people review their investments, move money into new products or check their returns ahead of the new financial year.

For thousands of victims, it was only at that point that the truth became clear: the investment they were sold never existed. Losses averaged £25,612 per person, often representing pension savings or long‑term investments.

Detective Superintendent Oliver Little, from the Lead Force Operations Room at the City of London Police, said:

“Investment fraud continues to have a devastating impact on victims, many of whom lose life‑changing amounts of money. Criminals are using professional‑looking websites, persuasive sales tactics and even cloned branding from real financial firms to appear legitimate We’re urging the public to take their time, carry out proper checks and get independent financial advice before parting with any money.”

Investment fraud last year ranged from bogus online trading platforms to fake bond schemes, cryptocurrency opportunities and glossy social‑media adverts that appeared to feature well‑known public figures. Fraud reports have highlighted how criminals now deploy AI‑manipulated videos, deepfake endorsements and cloned websites to draw victims in, echoing patterns seen across the wider fraud landscape.

Another growing problem is so‑called “recovery fraud”, where criminals return to previous victims while posing as law enforcement, lawyers or specialist recovery firms. They promise to retrieve stolen money but instead charge upfront fees and disappear. Detectives describe this as one of the most cynical developments in the fraud world, as criminals effectively monetise a victim’s desperation a second time.

Although victims were recorded in every police force area in the UK, the data suggests the picture may be even broader; more than a quarter of people reporting investment fraud did not disclose their location, limiting the ability to map the full spread of cases. Older adults, particularly those over 60, remained the most likely to come forward, in part because they are more likely to have significant savings or pension pots invested.

In parallel with these trends, officers have also observed a rise in so‑called “finfluencers” across social media - predominantly young male personalities who boast about making “easy money” on high‑risk trading platforms, particularly those linked to forex and rapid‑turnover investments.

Their content often glamorises quick wins, luxury lifestyles and aggressive self‑improvement narratives, themes recently explored in Louis Theroux’s documentary on the online ‘manosphere’. While not all of these personalities are involved in criminal activity, their posts can create a false sense of legitimacy around speculative trading and make inexperienced followers more vulnerable to opportunistic scammers who mimic the same language, style and promises.

As part of wider fraud‑prevention work, the City of London Police is urging the public to take simple steps to protect themselves.

• Before making any investment, use the FCA’s firm checker tool, to confirm whether a firm or individual is authorised. The tool can be accessed via the FCA website and is one of the most effective ways to avoid cloned firms and bogus advisers.
• We encourage anyone considering an investment to be cautious of unsolicited messages, adverts promising unusually high returns, or requests to keep the offer “confidential”.
• The City of London Police is reminding the public that any suspicious activity should be reported to Report Fraud as soon as possible at www.reportfraud.police.uk or by calling 0300 123 2040. In Scotland, victims of fraud and cybercrime should report to Police Scotland on 101.
• You can also contact the Financial Conduct Authority’s consumer helpline on 0800 111 6768 or report suspicious businesses or individuals by using the reporting form on their website

Source: Metropolitan Police published on this website Thursday 2 April 2026 by Jill Powell

A man who abused a family’s trust to secure alone time with a young girl and threatened to harm her if she spoke out about the sexual abuse, has been brought to justice.

He has today been sentenced to 15 years in prison following a detailed investigation led by Met detectives.

Kamran Khan, 44 (07.02.82), of Streatham High Road, Lambeth, was sentenced Wednesday, 1 April and received 15 years at Inner London Crown Court.

Khan was found guilty at the same court on Thursday, 15 January for ten sexual offences against a child. This included the rape of a girl under the age of 13, and the assault of a girl under 13 by touching. The offending relates to one victim.

Khan was brought to justice after the hard work and dedication from Met Officers. The team used detail phone analysis and forensics to prove Khan's multiple offences against the girl.

Detective Constable Franky Green, part of the Met’s Child Abuse Investigation Team said:

“I commend the courage of the victim and her family who came forward to bring light to Khan’s terrible offences. Khan prayed on a defenceless child and took advantage of formed connections which he used as a smokescreen for his abusive crimes.

“The immeasurable bravery of the victim and their family is tremendously appreciated.

“Our Child Abuse Investigation team works tirelessly to create a safe, supportive environment where victims feel able to speak freely. This specialist approach ensures that children and families are heard, protected and empowered throughout the investigative process.”

Khan was arrested on 6 July 2025, and an investigation subsequently began following a report from a family member accusing Khan of rape and the serious sexual assault of a child.

The range of abuse was uncovered after a family member witnessed an interaction between the child and Khan. Despite Khan threatening the child would be killed if she disclosed the harm he subjected her to, she bravely spoke out to a family member. She shared the sexual abuse she had suffered at his hands within her home, in her bedroom, and on a park bench.

With offending having been committed against a young child within her own home, officers worked resourcefully to secure evidence.

Khan’s phone was seized at the point of arrest and downloaded for review. The victim had disclosed that she had been forced to watch videos on his phone, and officers found corroborative pornographic material within his search history.

Additionally, forensic samples collected from Khan, as well as DNA samples from the victim, showed sexual contact had occurred.

The Met continues to strengthen its efforts to tackle child abuse across online, institutional, familial, and community settings, with officers remaining determined to bring offenders to justice. We have intensified our response through major investment in digital forensics, rapid analysis software, and advanced monitoring tools to track the activity of registered sex offenders. These efforts have contributed to three times more cases solved last year and 134 additional suspects being charged.

In addition to his 15-year sentence, Khan is now on the registered sex offenders list and was served with a restraining order as well as a sexual harm prevention order.

South London man sentenced to 15 years for child sexual offences

A man who abused a family’s trust to secure alone time with a young girl and threatened to harm her if she spoke out about the sexual abuse, has been brought to justice.

He has today been sentenced to 15 years in prison following a detailed investigation led by Met detectives.

Kamran Khan, 44 (07.02.82), of Streatham High Road, Lambeth, was sentenced Wednesday, 1 April and received 15 years at Inner London Crown Court.

Khan was found guilty at the same court on Thursday, 15 January for ten sexual offences against a child. This included the rape of a girl under the age of 13, and the assault of a girl under 13 by touching. The offending relates to one victim.

Khan was brought to justice after the hard work and dedication from Met Officers. The team used detail phone analysis and forensics to prove Khan's multiple offences against the girl.

Detective Constable Franky Green, part of the Met’s Child Abuse Investigation Team said:

“I commend the courage of the victim and her family who came forward to bring light to Khan’s terrible offences. Khan prayed on a defenceless child and took advantage of formed connections which he used as a smokescreen for his abusive crimes.

“The immeasurable bravery of the victim and their family is tremendously appreciated.

“Our Child Abuse Investigation team works tirelessly to create a safe, supportive environment where victims feel able to speak freely. This specialist approach ensures that children and families are heard, protected and empowered throughout the investigative process.”

Khan was arrested on 6 July 2025, and an investigation subsequently began following a report from a family member accusing Khan of rape and the serious sexual assault of a child.

The range of abuse was uncovered after a family member witnessed an interaction between the child and Khan. Despite Khan threatening the child would be killed if she disclosed the harm he subjected her to, she bravely spoke out to a family member. She shared the sexual abuse she had suffered at his hands within her home, in her bedroom, and on a park bench.

With offending having been committed against a young child within her own home, officers worked resourcefully to secure evidence.

Khan’s phone was seized at the point of arrest and downloaded for review. The victim had disclosed that she had been forced to watch videos on his phone, and officers found corroborative pornographic material within his search history.

Additionally, forensic samples collected from Khan, as well as DNA samples from the victim, showed sexual contact had occurred.

The Met continues to strengthen its efforts to tackle child abuse across online, institutional, familial, and community settings, with officers remaining determined to bring offenders to justice. We have intensified our response through major investment in digital forensics, rapid analysis software, and advanced monitoring tools to track the activity of registered sex offenders. These efforts have contributed to three times more cases solved last year and 134 additional suspects being charged.

In addition to his 15-year sentence, Khan is now on the registered sex offenders list and was served with a restraining order as well as a sexual harm prevention order.

Source: National Crime Agency (NCA) published on this website Tuesday 7 April 2026 by Jill Powell

A man who was previously jailed for 14 years for child sexual abuse offences has today been sentenced to life, after pleading guilty to an additional 67 charges.

Trevor Fernandes, 41, from Swindon, was jailed in 2022 after being convicted of grooming and blackmailing a girl in the US into abusing herself and another child. He was arrested by officers from the National Crime Agency in 2020, after the 13-year old girl reported the abuse to police in Garland, Texas.

She explained that she had been in communication with someone called ‘Trevor’ online for months, who had forced her to send him sexualised images of herself.

Over time, his requests had become more extreme and on one occasion, he demanded that the girl film herself sexually abusing another child and send him the footage.

He threatened to send the images and footage she had already sent to her friends and family if she refused to do as he asked.

On the 6 December 2020, NCA officers arrested Fernandes at his home address in Swindon, Wiltshire. Several devices were seized, including a mobile phone. The phone had an encrypted side to it and when it was forensically examined, investigators found images of the girl and the app which Fernandes had used to communicate with her.

Other online messaging apps were discovered, where Fernandes had set up accounts with various usernames including ‘cuteandstrict, ‘cutestrictsadist’ ‘Reckitt03’ and ‘TcTrevor’.

He was charged with 16 offences including causing and inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and making indecent images of children, and following a trial at Swindon Crown Court in May 2022, was found guilty of all charges. He was jailed in August 2022 to 14 years, with five years on an extended licence, a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) and indefinite sex offender’s registration.

NCA investigators continued to analyse the devices seized when Fernandes was arrested, and uncovered more offending against more victims. Following an extensive investigation, which included visiting and interviewing a number of victims in the UK and abroad, in September 2025, Fernandes was charged with an additional 67 offences which included blackmail, causing or inciting sexual activity with a child, malicious communication, causing a child to watch a sexual act and making & distributing indecent images of children.

He pleaded guilty to these offences in November 2025 and has today been jailed for life, with a minimum of 13 years and eight months to serve. 

Handing down the sentence, HHJ Taylor KC said this was "some of the worst offending of this type to come before the court" and paid tribute to the victims who he described as "highly vulnerable young girls".

Danielle Pownall, Senior Investigating Officer at the NCA said: “Fernandes is a prolific and dangerous child sex offender and knew at the time of his original conviction there were more children he had abused. He used threats and blackmail to coerce young children to commit horrendous acts, and the sentence given today highlights the severity of that offending.

“The young girl who reported the abuse to the authorities in US showed incredible bravery in coming forward and telling police what had happened to her. Without her courage, Fernandes would potentially still be sexually abusing children and I would like to thank her again for taking that step and facing her fears.

“Officers in the UK, specifically the lead officer and investigation team, together with officers in the US and Crown Prosecution Service, have worked tirelessly to ensure Fernandes is held accountable for his actions.  Their tenacity and resilience during this investigation has identified hundreds of victims, located all around the world, who have been subject to safeguarding activity.

“Protecting children is one if our highest priorities and we will continue to work closely with our law enforcement partners, both in the UK and overseas, to ensure those involved in the sexual abuse and exploitation of children are identified, located and held to account”.

Jeanette Smith, specialist prosecutor in the CPS’s Organised Child Sexual Abuse Unit, said: “Trevor Fernandes’s repulsive actions saw him use social media to control, exploit and damage young girls – aged between 1 and 16 – in England, America, Canada, Ireland and Norway.

“This case involved working with a number of international partners to demonstrate the scale of Fernandes’s offences and to ensure he faces justice for everything he has subjected his victims to and enable the court to pass a sentence which protects other young girls now and in the future.

“If you are in an abusive online situation, talk to someone – like some of the victims did in this case – so you can get help and perpetrators can be brought to justice.”

Source: National Crime Agency (NCA) published on this website Wednesday 1 April 2026 by Jill Powell

Two Vietnamese nationals who advertised small boats people smuggling on Facebook have been sentenced following a major UK-French investigation.

Hoang My Tra Nguyen, 25, from Heathfield Road in Croydon and Hop Cahn Nguyen, 36, from Grasmere Street, Leicester were arrested by NCA officers in April 2024 after a five-month investigation.

Both had arrived in the UK by small boat in January and July 2023 respectively.Hoang and Hop controlled Facebook accounts, together with another male who is awaiting extradition to France, to advertise small boats crossings from France to the UK, targeting the Vietnamese community.

They would include video clips of individuals travelling on a small boat and provide UK mobile numbers to arrange travel.

Messages included: "I still have a few direct flights to the UK. Passport available everyone" and "Orders for you guys who want to enter Europe with a cheap price... you guys hurry and get a seat".

Hoang and Hop would arrange crossings for migrants and helped them to abscond by putting them in touch with a third party once their claims were processed.

Officers put the group under surveillance and began to monitor their movements over the course of five months.

In February 2024, Hop was stopped by British Transport Police officers at Euston station, attempting to travel to Birmingham with migrants who had recently crossed the Channel via small boat.

Following their arrest in April, officers seized numerous mobile phones, sim cards and ledgers detailing the names, costs and details of routes.

Nguyen and Nguyen appeared at Croydon Crown Court in August 2024 and pleaded guilty to assisting unlawful immigration.

They were sentenced at the same court today (30 March).

Hop Cahn Nguyen was sentenced to 12 years' imprisonment and Hoang My Tra Nguyen was sentenced to 10 years' and six months' imprisonment.

NCA Branch Commander Saju Sasikumar said: 

"These defendants used social media to advertise small boats crossings for migrants, claiming cheap prices and urgency to entice people looking for a new life.

"These crossings are extremely dangerous and the defendants had no interest in the safety of those making the journey aside from ensuring they received their payment and made significant profits.

"Vietnamese nationals entering via a high risk and clandestine method like this automatically makes them vulnerable to be exploited or held under debt bondage.

"We will continue in our efforts to tackle organised immigration crime, from targeting people smugglers at every step of the route to removing social media pages attempting to advertise people smuggling."

Hilary Ryan, Specialist Prosecutor, from the Crown Prosecution Service said:

"The prison sentences handed down today are the latest in a series of prosecutions of criminals bringing Vietnamese migrants illegally into the UK.

"Hop Nguyen and Hoang Nguyen advertised on Facebook and then arranged illegal travel as part of an international organised crime network trying to undermine our borders.

"Their operation was sophisticated and they stood to make hundreds of thousands of pounds and today's sentence reflects that.

"Prosecutors in the CPS continue to work with the National Crime Agency and others to disrupt these gangs and put them out of business."

The NCA is working in partnership with social media companies to takedown social media posts, pages and accounts advertising the services of people smugglers.

In 2025 we worked with social media networks to have more than 10,000 posts pages or accounts linked to organised immigration crime removed from platforms, a record number.

A fourth man, aged 25, was also arrested at the address in Croydon by the NCA on behalf of the French authorities.