Pair suspected of compromising financial accounts worth £7.5m detained by police

A 24-year-old man was arrested this morning (Tuesday 22 April) at a property in Middlesbrough.

He is currently in police custody being questioned on suspicion of supplying articles for us in fraud, conspiracy to supply articles for use in fraud, fraud by false representation, fraud by false representation and unauthorised access to computer material, money laundering, blackmail and unauthorised access to material.

Meanwhile, a 30-year-old man, was also arrested today by the Dutch National Police in the Oost-Brabant region of The Netherlands.

These coordinated arrests in both countries are part of a long-running three-year investigation led by Cleveland Police’s Cyber Crime Unit.

It involves a tool that is alleged to have been designed to convince victims to provide authentication codes and other personal information which could be used to execute fraudulent bank transactions.

Over a two-year period, the tool is believed to have been used across 13 countries and over 28,000 times. It is suspected that financial accounts have been compromised, totalling £7.5 million.

As part of today’s operation, law enforcement is working with hosting companies to take down the platform. This is the first step towards enforcement activity against the wider network.

The investigation has been supported by the North East Regional Organised Crime Unit (NEROCU), National Crime Agency (NCA), Europol and Dutch National Police.

Detective Sergeant Kevin Carter, from Cleveland Police’s Cyber Crime Unit, said: “This is one of the biggest investigations into computer misuse and fraud that the force has worked on.

Over a three-year period, the team has been working closely with various law enforcement agencies to establish what activity has taken place, the number of victims believed to have been affected, and the identity of the individuals suspected of being involved.

“Today’s arrests further show how committed we are to investigating cybercrimes and targeting individuals suspected of this type of activity.

“The Dutch police, who were brought onboard in 2024, have provided invaluable support and expertise to the investigation. Without this partnership, the successful dismantling of the suspected network would not have been possible.

“Cybercriminals are not out of reach, and we have networks globally through which to pursue them.

“Our collaborative efforts with international partners demonstrate that we can, and will, track down individuals who we believe to be exploiting technology for criminal gain.

“Users of the JokerOTP bot platform can rest assured that law enforcement has been watching and will be in touch.”

Information and advice can be found via Action Fraud or our website.