A man who defrauded 310 victims of more than £12mn has been jailed for five years at Southwark Crown Court.
Jonathan Arafiena, 35 from Nine Elms pled guilty to one count of money laundering and conspiracy to defraud on Friday (February 9).
Two other individuals linked to the investment fraud scheme also pled guilty but received suspended sentences.
Ashley Morgan, 35 of Clapham and Kofi Ofori-Duah, 44 of Wanstead set up landing pages and websites where victims would enter their personal details.
According to the City of London police, victims were pressurised into buying investments on a false premise by Arafiena.
Over a two and a half year period, victims were offered investments in initial public offerings, cryptocurrency, commodities, traditional share dealing and binary options.
Some were told that large returns were guaranteed and money could be withdrawn at any time.
City of London Police said its investigation into the scheme showed none of the victims’ money had been invested as promised.
Suspicions about the scheme were first raised in 2018 when several victims made reports to Action Fraud claiming they were unable to retrieve their investment or even get in contact with the brokers.
Analysis by police found more than 50 bank accounts were linked to the Action Fraud reports, which were set up using identificaiton obtained from people who allowed their information to be used in return for a financial incentive or victims who had previously been coerced to share identification documents.
Money taken from victims was then transferred from account to account and occasionally transferred to foreign jurisdictions.
Detective Inspector Gareth Dothie from the fraud operations team, said: “Arafiena led an extravagant lifestyle where he purchased high-end cars, luxury watches and gold bullion from the proceeds of criminal activity. Unfortunately for him, we seized all of these and he is now facing a lengthy sentence behind bars.
“We would like to remind everyone to stay vigilant to any type of investment and to follow the age-old saying that if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Always do thorough background checks and see if the company is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, as well as seeking independent financial advice before parting with any money.”
Arafiena’s belongings seized by police will be auctioned with proceedings used to pay back the victims, according to the police.
alina.khan@ft.com
