In the following press release the City of London Police announced:

“Forty City of London Police officers have been involved in an operation across South East England and have arrested four men in connection with a £9 million mortgage fraud against a major insurance company.

In co-ordinated searches early this morning six teams entered four houses, the business unit of a gaming company and a solicitor’s office in North West London, Surrey, Hertfordshire, Milton Keynes and Northampton.

Officers seized a host of documents and arrested a 56-year-old and a 31-year-old in Watford, a 46-year-old in Wembley and a 39-year-old in Surrey.

They were also in position at the business unit to meet employees of the gaming company as they arrived for work and inform them about the police investigation. 

Detective Chief Superintendent Steve Head:

“The work this morning was a significant step forward in this complex investigation. The size of the police operation was evidence of the scale of this suspected fraud.”

The Economic Crime Directorate has seen a sharp increase in reported cases of mortgage fraud in the past eighteen months.

Typically a criminal gang, often including surveyors and solicitors, use false valuations and tenancy agreements to persuade lenders to provide loans far exceeding the worth of their properties.

Ch Supt Head added:

“It is not just the lenders that are being hit by the fraudsters. Individuals are losing millions and millions of pounds through a range of mortgage frauds, with much of this money being paid into the coffers of criminal networks.

“We have a number of significant investigations ongoing and as lenders and borrowers continue to scrutinise their finances I anticipate many more cases being referred to us in the near future.

“I would ask anyone who has fallen victim to mortgage fraud to contact CoLP. The more we know the more difficult we can make it for those committing this highly damaging crime.”

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has expressed their support for the actions being taken by CoLP to combat mortgage fraud.

A spokesperson said: “The SRA works closely with police and other law enforcement organisations to tackle mortgage fraud.

Since the start of 2009 the SRA has stepped up its work in relation to mortgage fraud, both through advice and warnings to the profession, and by increasing its detection and investigation resources to prevent, deter and tackle fraud.”