DOORSTEP criminals who prey on vulnerable and elderly victims are being targeted in a national initiative led by Operation Gauntlet, North Yorkshire County Council’s Multi-Agency Safeguarding Team.
The team has just completed a week of action called Operation Rogue Trader which included pursuit of suspects along with awareness-raising events.
The team has been working with police forces across the country to make a series of arrests, seize high value assets and charge offenders.
In partnership with police and trading standards officers from Cambridgeshire and Lincolnshire it secured the arrests of two suspects in a conspiracy to defraud and money laundering investigation
The arrests came after a vulnerable woman in her 80s from North Yorkshire was defrauded of over £90,000 for works undertaken to her driveway, roof and gardens.
The suspects were also served with restraint orders under the Proceeds of Crime Act, their assets frozen and seized. The investigation is continuing.
Following that the team secured the arrest of a further male in Cleveland, with assistance from police in North Yorkshire. This followed offences against three vulnerable victims for roofing works, with two victims being defrauded of £17,000 and £18,500 respectively. The arrest followed three previous arrests and restraint orders being served on two suspects for conspiracy to defraud.
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