'Desi' Fraudster Jailed After £500k Global Scam

A Peterborough man, Ali Amjad, has been sentenced to three years in prison for his role in a sophisticated global fraud scheme that stole more than £500,000 from businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. The 42-year-old, of Pakistani origin, had boasted that law enforcement would never apprehend him because he dealt exclusively in cash, Daily Dazzling Dawn understands.

Amjad was a key figure in a payment diversion operation that targeted firms in multiple countries, including Qatar, Kuwait, South Africa, Singapore, and Oman. The fraud involved cybercriminals using "business email compromise" to intercept company communications and alter payment details on invoices, redirecting funds into their own accounts. A Cambridgeshire agricultural business was one of the victims, suffering a loss of over £205,000. The scheme also included fraudulent applications for UK Government Bounce Back Loans.

Detectives from Cambridgeshire Police raided Amjad's home on Taverners Road on July 28, 2020. There, they discovered over £80,000 in cash hidden behind kitchen skirting boards and an additional £3,600 in his bedroom wardrobe.

Amjad, who has a prior conviction for money laundering, pleaded guilty to charges of arranging to facilitate the acquisition of criminal property and possessing criminal property. Detective Constable Alan Armstrong, who led the investigation, noted the increasing sophistication of such criminal enterprises.

Six of Amjad's accomplices also received suspended sentences for their roles in the criminal enterprise. They allowed Amjad to funnel stolen funds through their bank accounts in exchange for cash payments. The defendants were Curtis Brown, 28, from Godmanchester; Keith Gibling, 54, from Bedford; Warren Laver, 38, from Huntingdon; Thomas Pemberton, 34, from Ramsey; Jerome Sergeant, 35, from Yaxley; and Tommy Fordham, 34, from Somersham.