Five men were arrested yesterday by detectives investigating a major organised cybercrime.
The five – aged between 30 and 45 – are believed to have compromised an American Express Black Centurion charge card account and spent over half a million pounds on Rolex watches, wine, diamonds, designer luggage and eating out. It is believed that they illegally accessed an American Express customer's account details and their charge card, before embarking on a spending spree in London, Barcelona, Madrid and Marbella between December and March. One of them allegedly purported to be the victim and used fake identity documents in order to fraudulently use the card in various high-end stores.
The law enforcement officers – from the Metropolitan Police's Central e-Crime Unit (PCeU) – conducted coordinated searches at six addresses in Lambeth, Harrow, Barnet, Enfield and Brighton, where they recovered evidence including mobile phones, computers and financial documents. The intelligence-led investigation was supported by American Express investigators.
The men are currently in custody at a police station in West London.
