Company directors urged to take action on fraud
Last year was a bumper year for fraud cases heard in the UK courts, according to figures from KPMG's forensic accounting arm.
Instances of major reported fraud (each over £100,000) totalled £667m, more than double the figure for 1998. It was the fourth successive year that there had been a significant increase.
‘The upward trend has been a source of concern for some time,’ said Alex Plavsic, KPMG fraud investigation partner.
‘However, convictions in the high profile cases can both deter potential fraudsters and also encourage management that it is worth taking action when they suspect they are victims of fraud. In more and more cases I see companies equipped to take the risk of fraud seriously and to move swiftly on fraud suspicions.’
In the year to December 1999 there were 72 cases. The figures were dominated by two large value bootlegging frauds, an illegal gambling scam and a money laundering case. The majority of cases, however, involved losses under £1 million and were spread across all sectors of industry.
