News Archive - 2016
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23rd December 2016 • Posted in
Action taken as part of fourth phase of Operation Jasper, the biggest enforcement operation ever seen in the UK to combat counterfeiting and piracy on social media
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16th December 2016 • Posted in
Michael Patrick Phelan (61) finally started his prison sentence yesterday (15 December), having been arrested in Bournemouth on 13th December by Dorset Police.
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15th December 2016 • Posted in
Responding to today’s National Audit Office report Lord Toby Harris, Chair of National Trading Standards, said:
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4th November 2016 • Posted in
A cold calling criminal who conned elderly and vulnerable people out of over £150,000 has been sentenced to five years imprisonment today and disqualified from being a company director for eight years for his part in a fraudulent home alarm business.
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3rd November 2016 • Posted in
Consumers are being deceived through the clever use of digital technologies and this is behind a number of emerging threats, including counterfeit and dangerous goods being advertised on social media platforms and misleading listings on online portals. The threats have been identified by National Trading Standards in its annual ‘Consumer Harm Report’, which highlights the types of scams people should look out for and how to report suspected criminal activity.
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31st October 2016 • Posted in
A rogue trader who defrauded hundreds of people has been sentenced to five years in prison and disqualified from being a director for ten years, following his conviction for fraud at Bournemouth Crown Court.
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28th October 2016 • Posted in
A managing director and four co-directors of a Derby-based company have today (Friday 28 October) been sentenced to a total of 15 and half years at Nottingham Crown Court for their part in a multi-million pound fraud involving the mis-selling of advertising space to companies across the UK and Europe.
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11th October 2016 • Posted in
A man from Stourbridge was sentenced today to 7 ½ years imprisonment, having been found guilty yesterday of 33 offences of fraud and theft for running a business franchise scam between 1997 and 2010. The conviction and sentencing follows a lengthy investigation by the National Trading Standards Central England Scambuster Team and a trial lasting over 4 weeks.
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6th October 2016 • Posted in
A new campaign has launched today to raise awareness of scams and encourage people to take a stand against them. Scams often target people in vulnerable situations - the Friends Against Scams campaign aims to protect and prevent these people from becoming victims of scams by empowering communities to ‘Take a Stand Against Scams’.
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4th October 2016 • Posted in
Additional guidance on who should join an approved redress scheme if they work within the estate agency industry has today been issued.
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29th September 2016 • Posted in
A father and son who defrauded fifteen victims in South Wales of more than £70,000 have been sentenced today (29 September) to four and two years respectively at Cardiff Crown Court.
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28th September 2016 • Posted in
James Munro, Team Leader of the National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team, said:
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23rd September 2016 • Posted in
A cold calling criminal who conned elderly and vulnerable people out of over £150,000 has been found guilty at Bristol Crown Court yesterday (Thursday 22 September) of fraud and for breaching Consumer Protection legislation for his part in a fraudulent home alarm business.
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16th September 2016 • Posted in
The National Trading Standards Scams Team has seen its pioneering Friends Against Scams campaign recognised at the Government Counter Fraud Awards. The NTS Scams Team scooped the Excellence in Fraud Awareness award for the campaign.
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2nd September 2016 • Posted in
Over £232,000 worth of dangerous products destroyed
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11th August 2016 • Posted in
Illegal practice that misleads homebuyers on property websites in the spotlight.
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22nd July 2016 • Posted in
Nearly 750,000 pieces of scam mail have been prevented from entering the UK postal system in the last three months
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5th July 2016 • Posted in
Operation Jasper extended its reach into Eire in June and begins operating in Scotland this July as officers from Trading Standards and the Police in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland are joined by their Scottish and Irish equivalents in the fight against social media counterfeiting. The move is part of the latest phase of Operation Jasper, which was launched in May 2015 to tackle counterfeiting and piracy on social media.
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5th July 2016 • Posted in
Two criminals behind an elaborate debt recovery scam – which defrauded victims across the country out of tens of thousands of pounds – were sentenced to more than three years in prison at Chester Crown Court today (5 July). Mohammed Ali and Samira Saddique – who are brother and sister – pleaded guilty to offences of conspiracy to defraud and fraud by false representation. Ali was sentenced to 15 months in prison, whilst his sister Saddique received a two-year prison sentence. Both have also been disqualified from holding company directorships for five years.
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4th July 2016 • Posted in
A husband and wife from Leeds charged with consumer protection offences against vulnerable customers have, at Leeds Crown Court today (4 July 2016), given opposing pleas.
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28th June 2016 • Posted in
A Redcar builder who cheated residents out of more than £30,000 has been sentenced to nine months in prison, suspended for two years, and fined £6,000 after pleading guilty to a number offences at Teesside Crown Court.
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28th June 2016 • Posted in
A parking fraudster who was sentenced to 16 months in prison back in September has now been ordered to pay more than £150,000.
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21st June 2016 • Posted in
Victims were intimidated into paying hundreds of pounds for shoddy driveway repairs
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16th June 2016 • Posted in
Two criminals have each been sentenced to two years, suspended for two years, after swindling around 80 customers - including a wheelchair bound couple - out of an estimated total of £291,000 for shoddy and unnecessary housing repair works.
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8th June 2016 • Posted in
Six people sentenced to go to prison for a total of 5 years 9 months after judge hears testimony from over 300 victims.
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6th June 2016 • Posted in
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25th May 2016 • Posted in
An order banning a Brentwood man from estate agency work has taken effect after successful legal action by the National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team (NTSEAT).
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23rd May 2016 • Posted in
A new partnership between the National Trading Standards Scams Team and home care provider, Home Instead Senior Care, will place Home Instead’s 8,000 caregivers at the forefront of a new scambusting initiative.
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21st May 2016 • Posted in
People desperate to attend major pop concerts, music festivals and sporting events this summer face a greater risk of falling victim to criminals after online ticket fraud soared by 55 per cent.
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5th May 2016 • Posted in
Justice served for 90 victims duped out of £30,000
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29th April 2016 • Posted in
Kirk Michael Claus (aged 51) of Slate Delf Farm, Cragg Vale, Mytholmroyd has been sentenced to over six years in jail for failing to pay back £6.2 million gained from criminal activity
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18th February 2016 • Posted in
More than 35 victims who were ruthlessly targeted on their own doorsteps by a rogue building company have seen justice served after the company’s sole director, William Henry King, was sentenced to 14 months imprisonment, suspended for two years, at Maidstone Crown Court.
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8th February 2016 • Posted in
Philip Mark Harris (49) of Kingsbridge Devon and Roy John O’Grady (45) of Olton Road Solihull have been found guilty of fraud following a four-week trial at Birmingham Crown Court.
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27th January 2016 • Posted in
In recent days fraudulent emails have been circulating offering compensation for a so-called “Microsoft Support Scam”.
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22nd January 2016 • Posted in
Five people have been sentenced for being part of a £5.2m publishing fraud which affected thousands of victims from across the country.
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