Fraud gang stole £1m using Suits and The Riot Club aliases

A gang of investment fraudsters stole more than £1 million from victims using aliases from television hits Suits, The Riot Club and Hart to Hart.

Sujanthan Sotheeswaran, 35, and two accomplices acted as "brokers" on behalf of Choice Option and later Blue Crest Capital Options.

Members of the public were cold-called and pressured into investing in a managed account scheme.

They used names such as Jonathan Hart, from 1970s crime show Hart to Hart, Miles Richards and Harry Villiers, characters in 2014 British thriller The Riot Club, and Harvey Specter from Suits, the US law drama Meghan Markle starred in before meeting husband Prince Harry.

The trio were found guilty of fraud by false representation at Southwark Crown Court on Friday.

For his part, Sotheeswaran, of The Forum, Molesey was sentenced to three years imprisonment.

Darren Peck, 43, of Leighton Road, Kentish Town, received 21 months, suspended for two years. He must also complete 25 days rehabilitation activity and 100 hours unpaid work.

Denis Deegan, 49, of David Wildman Lane, Mill Hill, was jailed for two years and eight months.

Hayley Wade, a financial investigator from the City of London Police’s civil recovery team, said: "Sotheeswaran, Peck and Deegan used elaborate and detailed marketing materials, often copied from respected trading firms, to deceive countless victims.

"Their custodial sentences should serve as a reminder that no matter how convincing your pitch may be and however clever you think you are, if its fraudulent then we will find out."