Santander bank worker from Wembley acquitted of fake accounts fraud

A Santander personal bank advisor from Wembley has been acquitted of helping a fraudster using false identities open account.

Adrian Ramsey, 33, of Tokyngton Avenue, was accused of carrying out the swindle with Sheik Deen, 51, who was the manager at the branch in Stepney, east London.

The Old Bailey heard Deen was captured on CCTV repeatedly setting up accounts in different names during meetings with conman Madjid Bouafia.

However Boufia, 36, had tricked the bank workers by claiming he was a local business man in east London.

Ramsey and Deen were prosecuted for taking backhanders to open the accounts, but were found not guilty yesterday.

Boufia pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation and six counts of possession of articles for use in fraud in September last year.

He was jailed for three years and nine months.

He netted £61,953 from his collection of Santander accounts, plus an extra £24,000 from accounts he had managed to open at other banks.

A further count of conspiracy to convert criminal property and one count of fraud were left to lie on file.

Jailing him for three years and nine months, Judge Anuja Dhir QC said: “This offending began in 2010, it came to an end because you were arrested in June 2014.

“I take into account your plea of guilty when determining the appropriate sentence for this offence.

“But in truth you had little choice given the items recovered by police when they searched your home.”