Jailed: fraudster who donned smart business suit to pull off £30k bank scam

A fraudster who disguised himself as a businessman with an overcoat, trilby and briefcase as he pulled off a £30,000 bank scam has been jailed.

Saifur Rahman, 24, also put on a tie and dark-rimmed spectacles to try to hide his identity as he carried out the illegal transaction at a MetroBank branch in Chiswick.

Rahman was caught on camera approaching his accomplice, bank cashier Tanzil Hussain, to request two cash withdrawals from an account totalling £30,000.

Inner London crown court heard that Hussain, 26, was in on the scam and had agreed to bypass the usual customer identification procedures so that they could raid a customer’s account.

However, the withdrawals on October 27, 2017, were flagged as fraudulent by the bank and swiftly reported to police officers from the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU), leading to Hussain and Rahman’s arrest.

Police discovered the brown trilby, a blue overcoat with distinctive fur collar as well as the tie, glasses and briefcase in Rahman’s car.

He had kept transaction receipts for the £30,000 cash withdrawals and had other paperwork relating to the victim’s bank account.

Hussain’s home was searched and £5,000 was found hidden in his wardrobe there.

At court yesterday, Hussain was jailed for nine months and Rahman was sentenced to eight months behind bars. Detective Constable Dave Cass, who investigated the case for the card crime unit, said afterwards: “These two individuals went to great lengths to plan and organise this fraud, using a disguise to try and hide the identity of Rahman.

“Today’s sentencing shows that anyone who is caught abusing the trust placed in them by their employer will be punished along with those who try to help them.”

Hussain, of Kensington, and Rahman, from Camden, had both pleaded guilty to a charge of fraud.