Con artists bought £100m London office block with proceeds from fake 'romance' scam

London mansions purchased by cruel con-artists based in Southeast Asia have been seized in a joint US-UK operation. The properties were purchased by criminals behind industrial-scale scam centres in countries such as Cambodia. Victims were lured into handing over huge sums, with many tricked into thinking they were in a romantic relationship before being pressured to "invest" in fraudulent crypto-currency schemes.

Those working in the centres were often victims themselves, and were trapped before being forced to carry out online fraud under threat of torture. A total of 19 London properties belonging to criminals looking to launder their ill-gotten gains have been frozen as part of a government crackdown down on exploitation of the UK's financial system.

They include a a £12 million mansion in North London, owned by a multi-national network responsible. The leader of the network, Chen Zhi, and his web of enablers have incorporated their businesses in the British Virgin Islands and invested in the London property market.

They also bought a £100 million office building on Fenchurch Street in the City of London, and seventeen flats on New Oxford Street and in Nine Elms in South London.

The sanctions will freeze these businesses and properties with immediate effect, locking Chen and his network out of the UK's financial system.

Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said: "The masterminds behind these horrific scam centres are ruining the lives of vulnerable people and buying up London homes to store their money.

"Together with our US allies, we are taking decisive action to combat the growing transnational threat posed by this network - upholding human rights, protecting British nationals and keeping dirty money off our streets."

Scam centres in Cambodia, Myanmar and across the region use fake job adverts to attract foreign nationals to disused casinos or purpose-built compounds, where they are forced to carry out online fraud under threat of torture,. the Foreign Office said.

Scams often involve building online relationships to convince targets to "invest" huge sums of money. The proceeds are then laundered using a sophisticated financial ecosystem that includes seemingly legitimate front businesses and online gambling platforms.

Today's sanctions are being coordinated with sanctions by the US to ensure maximum impact, and follow extensive investigations by the Foreign Office and the United States' Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

Fraud Minister Lord Hanson said: "Fraudsters prey on the most vulnerable by stealing life savings, ruining trust, and devastating lives. We will not tolerate this.

"These sanctions prove our determination to stop those who profit from this activity, hold offenders accountable, and keep dirty money out of the UK. Through our new, expanded Fraud Strategy and the upcoming Global Fraud Summit, we will go even further to disrupt corrupt networks and protect the public from shameless criminals."