Lloyds bank workers who helped a gang of fraudsters to steal millions of pounds from rich customers using a string of impersonators have been jailed.
Bank workers Courtney Ayinbode, 29, Tajinder Galsinh, 35, Molly Jones, 24, and Benjamin Omoregie, 26, were all involved in the “high-level and sophisticated” scam.
The insiders scoured the computer system for dormant accounts holding large sums of money and passed on the details.
They also ordered new bank cards and altered phone numbers and addresses so that imposters could pose as the customers and set up transfers of hundreds of thousands of pounds at a time.
The money was then laundered through a series of bogus companies before being moved offshore to prevent it being recovered.
One victim lost more than £750,000 after a unknown man used a fake driving licence in his name to set up two transfers over three days.
Another customer with £3million in the bank only escaped becoming a victim when another member of staff became suspicious and rang him up to check.
The money was washed by “bespoke money launderer” Eddie Lakes, 41, and his henchman Kushveer Raulia, 25, through a complicated network of fake companies and accounts with the help of Parvez Hussain, 50.
Prosecutor Paul Cavin said the gang “were all involved in an agreement to defraud Lloyds TSB of millions of pounds”.
The first victim lost £750,975 in the space of three days after his account was accessed by both Ayinbode and Omoregie at the Balham and Streatham branches of Lloyds TSB in south west London in July 2013.
The money was laundered through dozens of bogus companies operated by Raulia.
The network of phoney businesses had been set up by Lakes - who has previous convictions for providing a ‘bespoke money laundering service’ to criminals.
He recruited Raulia as his front man.
Galsinh and Jones were involved in the attempted fraud on the account of Thomas Murphy at time when it had a £3 million balance.
Jones set up a CHAPS payment of £486,000 - supposedly for a house purchase - after an imposter came into her branch of Lloyds TSB.
Investigation of her mobile phone revealed messages relating to the Murphy account and a description of the man impersonating the customer.
Ayinbode, Jones, Omoreji and Galsinh were jailed for a total of 22 years.
Raulia, of Gledwood Gardens, Hayes, west London, denied being part of the scam but was convicted of two counts of conspiracy to defraud and one count of converting criminal property and was jailed for seven years.
Lakes, of Point Wharf, Brentford, was jailed for a total of five years.
Ayinbode, of Magdalen Court, Enmore Road, South Norwood, southeast London, denied and was convicted of conspiracy to defraud between 9 November 2012 and 8 August 2013 and was sentenced to five years imprisonment.
Galsinh, of Marlow Gardens, Hayes, denied but was convicted of one count of conspiracy to defraud and was jailed for six years.
Hussain, of Cedar Road, Romford, east London, denied and was convicted of converting criminal property and was caged for six years.
Jones, of Bohemia Chase, Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, admitted conspiracy to defraud ahead of trial and was jailed for five years.
Omoregie, of no fixed address, admitted the same charge and was sentenced to four years imprisonment.
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