The City of London Police has renewed its warning to employment agencies to be vigilant against a fraudster who has swindled recruiters across the country.

Operating under the pseudonyms: John Mozen and Jane Khan, the man uses company names similar to those of far eastern car/heavy industry companies. He then asks agencies to check the details of new clients and verify that the company does indeed exist.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

He sets up a fake foreign company and then contacts an agency asking for a temporary worker with a very specific set of skills (mainly languages). Within days, the agency is sent a CV, seemingly offering them someone with just that rare skill set. The false CV gets its fictitious owner a job with the non-existent overseas company and the recruitment agency pays the wages of the temporary worker. It is thought the criminal has stolen £300,000.

Recruiters only realise what has happened when invoices to recover the wages are sent to the false company and not reimbursed.

Recruitment agencies should also check their records for the following names:
Antonio Almeda, Antonio Almeida or Tony D’Almeda, or similar spelling Bero Venturi or Berodo Venturi, or similar spelling.

Company names ‘Myers and Myers’ and ‘hhi tekno’ have also been used.

DC Kevin Ives said: “We know that despite our earlier warning this fraudster is continuing to target UK recruitment companies. We are renewing our advice that the industry needs to ensure robust vetting procedures and that ID checks are carried out on new clients.
“We remain determined to catch this fraudster and want agencies who suspect they may have had any dealings with any of the above to report it to their local police station mentioning our inquiry.”

Anyone with information can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0870 555 111.