Bradford & Bingley fraud eight men and a woman in Sussex and north London arrested

They are suspected of targeting Bradford & Bingley between 2005 and 2007 in a buy-to-let scam on 500 homes.arrested eight men and a woman in Sussex and north London early on Tuesday. The authorities' investigation centres on a defunct mortgage broker called Eastbourne Financial Services. The nine suspects, aged between 29 and 73, were questioned at separate police stations on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud and money laundering. They were held following raids on six residential addresses and three businesses in Sussex and north London. The City Police were tipped off about a large scale fraud by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) which, in the past year, has been increasingly vigorous in taking action against mortgage brokers who submit fraudulent applications to lenders. Last year the FSA banned 20 individual mortgage brokers as part of its crackdown and said it would continue to make an example of mortgage fraudsters. Last week the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) issued new guidance to all forces warning of the massive scale of mortgage fraud. Senior officers recommended the Home Office make the financial scam a high priority.