Fraudsters 'took £15m from bank'

A group of businessmen defrauded NatWest Bank out of more than £15m, a court has heard.
The money was transferred from a bank in St Helens, Merseyside, in five days between the end of April and early May 2004, Southwark Crown Court was told.

Four men, from Merseyside, Cheshire and Paisley in Scotland, are accused of conspiracy to defraud, laundering stolen money and falsifying documents.

All of the men, who cannot be named for legal reasons, deny the charges.

The prosecution said that the group, a 45-year-old from Cheshire, a 35-year-old from Paisley, a third man, 33, from Liverpool and a fourth, a 27-year-old from Bootle, Merseyside, moved the money into bank accounts in Latvia and Dubai.

'Simple plan'

Prosecutor David Aaronberg told the jury it was laundered through different companies by the men who created thousands of false documents to hide the swindle.

He said: "The plan was a very simple one. The fraudsters aimed to obtain millions of pounds from the branch of NatWest Bank in St Helens, and remove it from the UK as quickly as possible.

"They attempted to obtain over £20m. They succeeded in obtaining over £15m."

Police are still searching for Sohail Ackrim, a businessman from Dubai, in connection with the fraud.

Another 10 men will go on trial in connection with the fraud in January.

The trial of the four men is expected to last four months.

SOURCE: BBC