A man from Forest Gate was arrested today after a 69-year-old woman was duped into handing over �140,000 into an Olympic Games scam involving a false police transport contract.
Officers from the Metropolitan Police Service’s Operation Podium detained a 24-year-old on suspicion of fraud by misrepresentation.
He is currently being quizzed at a central London police station.
The arrest was part of an joint investigation with US Law enforcement agencies into an alleged online scam, where overseas victims are tricked into sending a fraudster money to invest in their business.
Police believe initial contact with victims is made on internet dating websites.
Once befriended, the fraudsters claim they need to pay the “initial costs” of fulfilling a contract they had won to supply coach transportation for police officers during the Olympics.
This morning’s arrest follows previous arrests at the end of December of a 49-year-old man and a 39-year-old woman.
They are bailed to return to a north London police station in late March pending further inquiries.
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