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A man has been sentenced to four years and six months in prison at Southwark Crown Court (14 June 2022) for providing criminals with access to computer software to enable them to compromise victims’ bank accounts and commit fraud offences.
Timmy Ijie, 25, of South London, pleaded guilty to supplying computer software for fraudulent purposes and money laundering following an investigation by the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU), a specialist police unit funded by the banking and finance industry.
Ijie sold access to the service to other criminals via an encrypted messaging system at a cost of $700 for a monthly subscription, payable in cryptocurrency. The software enabled criminals to dupe people into handing over their personal banking information, which was then used to bypass bank security systems. The service was purchased on over 1,000 occasions and generated sales of over £1 million.
Ijie was found to have sold the service between 24 April 2021 and 4 February 2022, and the fraud was spotted by the DCPCU’s intelligence unit.
Andrew Hammond, Detective Constable at the DCPCU, said:
Ijie callously profited from the sale of computer software which enabled criminals to compromise victims’ bank accounts and commit fraud. Fortunately our unit was able to identify this criminal and bring him to justice by using a variety of tactics and working closely with the Crown Prosecution Service. This sentencing is a warning to those who believe they can benefit financially from fraud that they will be caught and punished.
Ijie callously profited from the sale of computer software which enabled criminals to compromise victims’ bank accounts and commit fraud.
Fortunately our unit was able to identify this criminal and bring him to justice by using a variety of tactics and working closely with the Crown Prosecution Service.
This sentencing is a warning to those who believe they can benefit financially from fraud that they will be caught and punished.
Alistair Dickson of the CPS said:
Ijie boasted on social media how successful this software was, in enabling the commission of fraud. He bragged that, in one day alone, it had been used by criminals to defraud over 150 victims and posted positive reviews from criminals who had successfully used the software. Potentially thousands of victims may have had their bank accounts compromised and money stolen from them. Ijie’s guilty pleas and sentence will prevent this software circulating any further and will help keep bank accounts secure from fraudsters. We would like to thank the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit for their excellent investigative work.
Ijie boasted on social media how successful this software was, in enabling the commission of fraud. He bragged that, in one day alone, it had been used by criminals to defraud over 150 victims and posted positive reviews from criminals who had successfully used the software.
Potentially thousands of victims may have had their bank accounts compromised and money stolen from them. Ijie’s guilty pleas and sentence will prevent this software circulating any further and will help keep bank accounts secure from fraudsters.
We would like to thank the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit for their excellent investigative work.
The Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU) is a unique proactive police unit, with a national remit, formed as a partnership between UK Finance, the City of London Police and the Metropolitan Police together with the Home Office. It is fully sponsored by the banking and finance industry, with an on-going brief to investigate, target and, where appropriate, arrest and seek successful prosecution of offenders responsible for card, cheque and payment fraud crimes. It is headed up by a Detective Chief Inspector and comprises officers from the Metropolitan and City of London police forces who work alongside banking industry fraud investigators and colleagues. 3. If you think you have become a victim of fraud please report it to Action Fraud at https://www.actionfraud.police.uk or by calling 0300 123 2040. If you live in Scotland, please report directly to Police Scotland by calling 101.
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