Thirty eight people arrested and nearly £120,000 seized as part of month long fraud operation

We seized almost £120,000, arrested 38 people, and secured four bank account freezing orders as part of a month-long operation targeting businesses on Merseyside suspected of being involved in money laundering.

The operation, which ran throughout October, was part of a period of national fraud intensification jointly led by the National Economic Crime Centre and the National Police Chiefs’ Council.

It aimed to identify and disrupt organised crime groups and high street businesses including barber shops, vape shops, nail bars and mini markets which may be used to launder money.

It also aimed to identify and disrupt immigration crime, including illegal working and the exploitation of migrant workers.

During October, 21 men were arrested and charged with being concerned in the production of a controlled drug Class B (cannabis) following the discovery of an industrial-scale cannabis farm in Liverpool city centre warehouse on 4 October.

In addition, we arrested individuals for possession of controlled drugs with intent to supply, possession of criminal property, possession of offensive weapons and illegal working in breach of visa requirements.

We also secured account freezing orders to the value of £140,000.

An account freezing order (AFO) is a court order that prevents access to funds in a bank account because authorities suspect the money is linked to criminal activity.

There were also a number of multi-agency visits to premises across Merseyside involving colleagues from immigration and Trading Standards during which a quantity of counterfeit and dangerous goods were seized including a large number of fake Apple products and unsafe counterfeit Labubu dolls. 

Detective Chief Inspector Mike Dalton, from Economic Interventions, said: “This operation was aimed at disrupting organised immigration crime and money laundering and formed part of a national co-ordinated response by police forces across the UK.

“We know that organised crime groups adopt a number of different methods and we remain committed to identifying and disrupting them using all powers at our disposal.

“This month-long operation is just a snapshot of the work we do on a daily basis to achieve that aim and shows how our work is focused across the whole of Merseyside.

“I want the public to feel reassured that we will continue to work with our partners in the local authorities, including Trading Standards and Immigration to target the businesses we know are involved in criminality and exploitation.”