0:00:02 > 0:00:06Welcome to a world where nothing is quite as it seems.
0:00:06 > 0:00:09Welcome to Fake Britain.
0:00:09 > 0:00:10Police!
0:00:25 > 0:00:29In this series, I'm investigating the world of the criminals
0:00:29 > 0:00:31who make their money at your expense.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34I'll be showing you how not to get ripped off.
0:00:34 > 0:00:39Coming up, the dream job offer that turned out to be fake.
0:00:39 > 0:00:41Everything you've worked for has gone.
0:00:41 > 0:00:43My car's gone, my home's gone.
0:00:43 > 0:00:45You know, my job's gone.
0:00:45 > 0:00:51Tracking down the people selling fake medicines which are flooding Britain.
0:00:51 > 0:00:56Your average internet purchaser could be playing Russian roulette with their health.
0:00:56 > 0:00:58And the fake gap year con
0:00:58 > 0:01:01that confronts parents with their worst fears.
0:01:01 > 0:01:05It hit me incredibly emotionally. I cried like I'd never cried before.
0:01:11 > 0:01:15Every parent would dread hearing the news that their son or daughter
0:01:15 > 0:01:17had been involved in an accident or was in trouble,
0:01:17 > 0:01:21especially if that news came while the youngster was travelling abroad.
0:01:21 > 0:01:27But I've discovered some con artists are preying on parents who are out of touch with their children.
0:01:27 > 0:01:30It's called a fake emergency.
0:01:30 > 0:01:35Gavin and Vina Hogg live in the Brecon Beacons,
0:01:35 > 0:01:39a world away from the gap year their son was having in South America.
0:01:39 > 0:01:44Having finished their A levels, Josh and his cousin planned an adventure in South America
0:01:44 > 0:01:47before heading off to Bristol University.
0:01:47 > 0:01:51Him and his cousin wanted to travel throughout Bolivia, Peru,
0:01:51 > 0:01:55and Ecuador and Colombia.
0:01:55 > 0:01:57Colombia was the last leg of the holiday
0:01:57 > 0:02:00and his parents were a little nervous.
0:02:00 > 0:02:08I was a little concerned that he hadn't gone with an organised group.
0:02:08 > 0:02:11We'd heard that Colombia could be a bit dodgy.
0:02:11 > 0:02:15Josh had just one epic bus journey left
0:02:15 > 0:02:18before he could catch his flight home.
0:02:18 > 0:02:24He was in Bogota and then the next day he got on the bus to Quito, a 30-hour bus journey.
0:02:24 > 0:02:30Gavin and Vina knew their son was going to be unreachable for the next 30 hours.
0:02:30 > 0:02:34So it was a surprise when they got an email from him.
0:02:34 > 0:02:38There was an email from Josh Hogg. His emails always came in as Josh Hogg.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42I opened it up and the words were, "Hey, Mum,
0:02:42 > 0:02:47"I'm emailing you from a Colombian military prison.
0:02:47 > 0:02:51"The police have taken me off the bus.
0:02:51 > 0:02:53"They planted cocaine on me."
0:02:53 > 0:02:56It was the news that every parent dreads
0:02:56 > 0:02:58and they imagined the worst.
0:02:58 > 0:03:03I just felt completely sick. It gets you right in the stomach.
0:03:03 > 0:03:07Your first reaction as a parent is you've got to help.
0:03:07 > 0:03:11Whether that's money, or jumping on an aeroplane,
0:03:11 > 0:03:13and flying out to that country.
0:03:13 > 0:03:18We had to look at all our options.
0:03:18 > 0:03:22The next 24 hours were hell for Gavin and Vina
0:03:22 > 0:03:27as they tried to explore ways to get their son home, as he asked for money.
0:03:27 > 0:03:29I must have had four or five emails from him,
0:03:29 > 0:03:32saying "They're not going to release me to an ATM machine,
0:03:32 > 0:03:34"you've got to get me out of here."
0:03:34 > 0:03:37Gavin and Vina were at their wits' end.
0:03:37 > 0:03:42They couldn't speak to Josh and didn't know where to start looking for him.
0:03:42 > 0:03:48I kept saying, "Josh, find out where are you. Where exactly are you?"
0:03:48 > 0:03:52And he would respond, "I'm in the middle of nowhere."
0:03:52 > 0:03:55Every time they found a solution,
0:03:55 > 0:03:59the fear they could read in their son's emails changed their minds.
0:03:59 > 0:04:01We said we'd contact the embassy
0:04:01 > 0:04:06and he very quickly responded, "Don't contact the embassy.
0:04:06 > 0:04:12"If the officials start coming in, they'll have to officially arrest me."
0:04:12 > 0:04:17And that would complicate his situation.
0:04:17 > 0:04:22And we thought, "Yes, you can see that. Best to pay the money and get out."
0:04:22 > 0:04:26But time was running out as they were about to lose contact with Josh.
0:04:26 > 0:04:29They'd be completely in the dark and cut off from their son.
0:04:29 > 0:04:32And also, Josh had been saying,
0:04:32 > 0:04:36"I don't know how much more they'll let me use the computer.
0:04:36 > 0:04:38"It's a bit random."
0:04:38 > 0:04:42And then Josh introduced, "I've met this Canadian guy here."
0:04:42 > 0:04:48When Josh stopped emailing us and the Canadian guy introduced himself.
0:04:48 > 0:04:54"I've just been released." Then all the correspondence was with this Canadian guy."
0:04:54 > 0:04:58He told us that he was a UN worker who'd been arrested.
0:04:58 > 0:05:02He'd been delayed in his research in the jungle due to the heavy rains.
0:05:02 > 0:05:06We knew there'd been heavy rains in Colombia, so that tied in.
0:05:06 > 0:05:13That he knew the country very well and that basically Josh was quite safe
0:05:13 > 0:05:16but they wanted money for his release.
0:05:16 > 0:05:19Relieved to have some connection to Josh,
0:05:19 > 0:05:23they didn't doubt for a second that Chris was someone they could trust.
0:05:23 > 0:05:26He called. We actually spoke to him.
0:05:26 > 0:05:31He told us a bit, that his wife was pregnant back in Canada,
0:05:31 > 0:05:35and she was asleep in bed because she'd spent the last 48 hours
0:05:35 > 0:05:37stressing about his capture.
0:05:37 > 0:05:42Then he introduced the concept of Moneygram and Western Union,
0:05:42 > 0:05:45which we'd never really come across before.
0:05:45 > 0:05:51They needed 750,000 pesos for his release,
0:05:51 > 0:05:54which equated to 273 English pounds.
0:05:54 > 0:06:00We'd been tearing our hair out as the first four times we tried to transfer money, it wouldn't do it.
0:06:00 > 0:06:05It was only when we used a debit card that it accepted it.
0:06:05 > 0:06:09So we had all the money ready to go
0:06:09 > 0:06:16but we couldn't actually make the transaction until the offices opened at seven in the morning.
0:06:16 > 0:06:22So we then had to ask this guy Chris, "Are you prepared to wait another six hours
0:06:22 > 0:06:27"before we can actually verify the transaction and it will be released."
0:06:27 > 0:06:31So it was a bit... It was pretty nail-biting.
0:06:31 > 0:06:35Their only link to their son locked away in a foreign prison
0:06:35 > 0:06:37was the Canadian, Chris.
0:06:37 > 0:06:38He was their only hope.
0:06:38 > 0:06:43In our mind's eye, he was sitting in this dusty cafe
0:06:43 > 0:06:47in the middle of a terrorist war zone
0:06:47 > 0:06:50with a military prison over there.
0:06:50 > 0:06:56And he was waiting for his taxi to arrive and then he was gone.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59But all was not as it seemed.
0:06:59 > 0:07:03Find out what did happen to Josh later in the programme.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12Astonishingly, all of these medicines are fake.
0:07:12 > 0:07:16From life-saving cancer and fertility drugs to heart tablets.
0:07:16 > 0:07:21As I've been discovering, fake medicines is one of the most dangerous and lucrative
0:07:21 > 0:07:23criminal industries in the world.
0:07:23 > 0:07:27Buying medicines online is certainly not what the doctor ordered.
0:07:30 > 0:07:32We're on a dawn raid with Wiltshire police
0:07:32 > 0:07:38who've had intelligence that a local resident is importing and dealing in fake medicines.
0:07:38 > 0:07:41We're en-route to execute a warrant under the Misuse of Drugs Act.
0:07:41 > 0:07:47This is information that a chap has been importing controlled drugs Class C.
0:07:50 > 0:07:54The house has been under surveillance by undercover agents
0:07:54 > 0:07:58and the suspect doesn't know he's being watched.
0:07:59 > 0:08:02They know that he's on his own in the house
0:08:02 > 0:08:05but they don't know exactly what drugs they'll find.
0:08:08 > 0:08:09- MAN:- Oh, don't do the door!
0:08:09 > 0:08:14The suspect is arrested on suspicion of importing and supplying
0:08:14 > 0:08:17medicines which are illegal without a prescription.
0:08:17 > 0:08:22Once he's dressed, we'll remove him from the property and continue looking for evidence.
0:08:22 > 0:08:25He's taken downstairs so they can search his bedroom.
0:08:25 > 0:08:31The man is suspected of importing and selling fake prescription drugs from his home.
0:08:31 > 0:08:37The raid is a tiny part of a £50 billion industry making fake medicines.
0:08:37 > 0:08:42The problem is so bad that big pharmaceutical companies are fighting back.
0:08:42 > 0:08:46Today's raid is a direct result of their own investigations.
0:08:47 > 0:08:50One of the simplest ways of fighting counterfeit, clearly,
0:08:50 > 0:08:53is for us to use agents
0:08:53 > 0:08:57to go onto the internet and purchase from websites various products
0:08:57 > 0:09:03which we then analyse to see if they are indeed the genuine article.
0:09:03 > 0:09:05Working with the postal services,
0:09:05 > 0:09:09they intercepted parcels coming into the UK from China and India.
0:09:09 > 0:09:13Large amounts of fake drugs ordered by individuals
0:09:13 > 0:09:16sets alarm bells ringing.
0:09:16 > 0:09:19The number of packages that must be arriving from overseas,
0:09:19 > 0:09:24it's evident that some of them will be getting through, placing people's lives at risk.
0:09:25 > 0:09:29They found an alarming number of parcels addressed to the house in Wiltshire.
0:09:29 > 0:09:35The believe they have evidence he bought 65,000 pills in just five days.
0:09:37 > 0:09:39So the post to the house was watched.
0:09:39 > 0:09:43The next-door-neighbour was also tricked into signing for parcels
0:09:43 > 0:09:46but had no idea what was in them.
0:09:46 > 0:09:48These are unopened.
0:09:51 > 0:09:54Yeah, that's the stuff from India.
0:09:54 > 0:09:59When you purchase medicine online, it could have been manufactured in a garage somewhere.
0:10:00 > 0:10:04We've found appalling hygiene conditions
0:10:04 > 0:10:08with rat faeces and other rubbish lying around on the floor.
0:10:08 > 0:10:12Clearly some of this has made its way into the products that have been manufactured.
0:10:12 > 0:10:19Your average internet purchaser potentially could be playing Russian roulette with their health.
0:10:19 > 0:10:25Later on, we find out exactly what drugs were found under the mattress.
0:10:25 > 0:10:30And how a job offer that was meant to improve a life turned it upside-down.
0:10:30 > 0:10:34There's nothing I can do except try and drag myself out of the gutter
0:10:34 > 0:10:37and hopefully get another job.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40And we're on the cutting edge of the fight against fakes.
0:10:40 > 0:10:42Maybe cut your leg off or worse.
0:10:47 > 0:10:50Millions of homes in the UK, with the exception of mine,
0:10:50 > 0:10:53have got a set of these - hair straighteners.
0:10:53 > 0:10:57Because they're so popular, that's made them a target with counterfeiters.
0:10:57 > 0:11:02Now, do bear in mind with these that you have to plug them into the mains socket.
0:11:02 > 0:11:07And if you've bought a fake, just like one of these - and all of them are fakes -
0:11:07 > 0:11:09you could be in big trouble.
0:11:10 > 0:11:1617-year-old Rebecca from Leicestershire wanted some hair straighteners for her birthday.
0:11:16 > 0:11:22She chose a pair of Good Hair Days, or ghd's, which her boyfriend bought for her online.
0:11:22 > 0:11:27They looked really good and I was really pleased when I opened them on my birthday.
0:11:27 > 0:11:29But when she used them for the first time,
0:11:29 > 0:11:32she had anything but a good hair day.
0:11:32 > 0:11:37When I noticed they weren't running smoothly through my hair,
0:11:37 > 0:11:42at first I thought it might have been part of my hair extensions stuck to it or something.
0:11:42 > 0:11:48But then I realised it was a big chunk of my hair
0:11:48 > 0:11:52just stuck to the plate of the straighteners.
0:11:52 > 0:11:55I was scared, so I unplugged them and ran down to Mum.
0:11:55 > 0:11:59She had the straighteners in her hand, and they were black
0:11:59 > 0:12:01and all her hair was on it.
0:12:01 > 0:12:03I was like, "Oh, my God!"
0:12:03 > 0:12:07Every time I ran my fingers through it, bits kept coming out.
0:12:07 > 0:12:11The smell came all the way down the stairs. It was really horrible.
0:12:11 > 0:12:17I immediately rang ghd and that's when they told me to give them the serial number.
0:12:17 > 0:12:21I gave them the serial number and they said they were fakes.
0:12:21 > 0:12:25I said, "No way!" And they said, "I'm afraid they are."
0:12:25 > 0:12:30They'd bought a pair of fake ghd's from what she thought was their genuine website.
0:12:30 > 0:12:33But even that turned out to be fake.
0:12:33 > 0:12:38The website had all the proper pictures on
0:12:38 > 0:12:42and the look was exactly the same as the official website.
0:12:42 > 0:12:44And it also had on it
0:12:44 > 0:12:51"This is a genuine website connected to ghd
0:12:51 > 0:12:53"and beware of imitations."
0:12:53 > 0:12:56So we didn't think anything of it.
0:12:56 > 0:12:59When buying off the internet,
0:12:59 > 0:13:02check it's a genuine website by looking at the address bar.
0:13:02 > 0:13:07If it is genuine, it should be official like "ghd hair.com".
0:13:07 > 0:13:14But if it's a made-up address like ghd555 that Becka bought her straighteners from,
0:13:14 > 0:13:16then it's time to worry.
0:13:16 > 0:13:19Real ghd's cost about £100.
0:13:19 > 0:13:21But the fakes aren't cheap either.
0:13:21 > 0:13:26They're just expensive enough to make you think you're getting a good deal online.
0:13:26 > 0:13:32It wasn't half price. It was only 20 to £30 off the original price.
0:13:32 > 0:13:36So we didn't think anything of it that it could be fake.
0:13:36 > 0:13:403.7 million counterfeit products are seized every year
0:13:40 > 0:13:45at Britain's borders like Felixstowe, the UK's largest container port.
0:13:45 > 0:13:50UK Border Agency officer Anne sees a steady flow of these fake straighteners
0:13:50 > 0:13:52coming through Felixstowe docks.
0:13:52 > 0:13:59Within the box we're looking at a nice case to keep your hair styler in
0:13:59 > 0:14:01once it's out of the original packaging.
0:14:02 > 0:14:04A "How to" DVD.
0:14:06 > 0:14:09Instructions on what to do.
0:14:09 > 0:14:13And then in here we've got the styler itself.
0:14:13 > 0:14:17A plug on it for the UK market.
0:14:17 > 0:14:21But these are potentially so dangerous.
0:14:21 > 0:14:24With no safety standards,
0:14:24 > 0:14:28these dodgy pairs can heat up to 285 degrees Celsius.
0:14:28 > 0:14:32Genuine ghd's don't go beyond 200
0:14:32 > 0:14:36because after that, human hair can melt.
0:14:36 > 0:14:39You're not just talking someone burning their hair.
0:14:39 > 0:14:42The entire thing could catch fire.
0:14:42 > 0:14:46The best that would happen would be that they didn't work at all.
0:14:47 > 0:14:53But the fraudsters are getting clever. Because Customs are so good at seizing fakes,
0:14:53 > 0:14:57they've started to import the parts separately and put them together here in the UK.
0:14:57 > 0:15:02This loophole means it's not a fake until it's been rebranded.
0:15:02 > 0:15:06What would have sold for a fiver can now go for £100.
0:15:06 > 0:15:09Working with a UK border agency,
0:15:09 > 0:15:14Nottingham Trading Standards launched their biggest seizure operation ever.
0:15:14 > 0:15:16The operation was huge.
0:15:16 > 0:15:20There was a huge amount of product and a lot of money had changed hands.
0:15:20 > 0:15:22So in my experience, it's the biggest operation
0:15:22 > 0:15:26I've been involved in in 25 years of trading standards.
0:15:26 > 0:15:29In this ordinary suburban house in Nottinghamshire,
0:15:29 > 0:15:35Stuart Peach and his gang were making millions in a major criminal operation,
0:15:35 > 0:15:38importing and assembling piles of fake goods.
0:15:38 > 0:15:39During the raid,
0:15:39 > 0:15:44they seized 5,000 pairs of hair straighteners, all of them fake
0:15:44 > 0:15:46and potentially deadly.
0:15:46 > 0:15:51The key thing here is all of the effort has gone into making them look like the real thing.
0:15:51 > 0:15:54No effort has been put into making sure they're safe.
0:15:54 > 0:15:57In this criminal operation alone,
0:15:57 > 0:16:00ghd would have lost half a million pounds
0:16:00 > 0:16:04with 5,000 people falling for the dangerous fakes.
0:16:04 > 0:16:07Fake electrical items are dangerous.
0:16:07 > 0:16:11You lose your money, maybe your hair, and even your life.
0:16:17 > 0:16:20Josh Hogg is on his gap year in Colombia.
0:16:20 > 0:16:23Having got on a 30-hour bus journey,
0:16:23 > 0:16:26his parents then received the worst news they could imagine.
0:16:26 > 0:16:30Their son had been taken to a military jail.
0:16:31 > 0:16:35They think their only hope of getting him out is the friendly Canadian Chris,
0:16:35 > 0:16:37who says that he can help.
0:16:37 > 0:16:44I got up at half past five, back down to the email. "Chris, are you still there? Can't sleep."
0:16:44 > 0:16:52He replied back, "Yes, I'm still here. It's OK. The driver's asleep. And it won't be long now."
0:16:52 > 0:16:55When you send your money via Western Union,
0:16:55 > 0:16:59they give you a ten pin digit number.
0:16:59 > 0:17:01We sent that to Chris
0:17:01 > 0:17:04who said, "I will give it a go.
0:17:04 > 0:17:06"I will try it now.
0:17:06 > 0:17:11"Next time you speak to me I will probably have Josh with me."
0:17:11 > 0:17:15Just half an hour before the money transfer went through,
0:17:15 > 0:17:18their 24-hour ordeal was almost over.
0:17:18 > 0:17:21And then the phone rang.
0:17:21 > 0:17:22At 6.15 that morning,
0:17:22 > 0:17:27the phone goes and Gavin picks up the phone.
0:17:27 > 0:17:29And it's Josh.
0:17:29 > 0:17:34All I can hear Gavin saying is, "Is that you, Josh? Is that you?"
0:17:34 > 0:17:39He didn't know who it was. "It's Josh." "Who?" I said,"Josh!"
0:17:39 > 0:17:42"I'm in Quito. What's been going on?"
0:17:42 > 0:17:48Then he gave me to his cousin. "Yeah, we're both here. What's going on?
0:17:48 > 0:17:50"Don't give any money!"
0:17:50 > 0:17:55Unbeknown to them, Josh's parents had been the victim of a scam.
0:17:55 > 0:17:58Chris, who they'd trusted, was actually a fraudster.
0:17:58 > 0:18:02He'd known the boys would be out of contact for 30 hours
0:18:02 > 0:18:05and had hacked into Josh's email and Facebook accounts
0:18:05 > 0:18:08and pretended to be him to his parents.
0:18:08 > 0:18:13Josh had never been in jail but had been on the bus the whole time.
0:18:13 > 0:18:18Amazingly, when they got into Quito at two in the morning,
0:18:18 > 0:18:22after a 30-hour bus journey, there was an internet cafe open.
0:18:22 > 0:18:25We read them all and realised this guy's quite clever.
0:18:25 > 0:18:28He knows everything we've done. So I was really angry,
0:18:28 > 0:18:30livid with this guy.
0:18:30 > 0:18:34What he'd done to my parents was unspeakable.
0:18:34 > 0:18:40My first instinct was, "If it's not Josh in prison, who's the poor kid in prison?"
0:18:40 > 0:18:44Then I thought, "God, what are we going to do with Chris?
0:18:44 > 0:18:47"This poor guy who's been sitting in a dusty roadside cafe
0:18:47 > 0:18:50"waiting to release Josh.
0:18:50 > 0:18:52"How am I going to deal with him?
0:18:52 > 0:18:54"Maybe I should still send the money."
0:18:54 > 0:19:02I was so far into the story and the film and then it went bang and suddenly stopped.
0:19:03 > 0:19:07Yep, it didn't occur to us it was a whole hoax.
0:19:08 > 0:19:10It hit me incredibly emotionally.
0:19:12 > 0:19:16I cried like I never cried before, really.
0:19:16 > 0:19:17It all just crashed in around me.
0:19:17 > 0:19:22I just thought, "Yeah, it's a scam. A complete scam."
0:19:22 > 0:19:25It is evil. It's messing with people's heads.
0:19:25 > 0:19:27People's security.
0:19:27 > 0:19:34We got completely sucked in. It was totally believable.
0:19:34 > 0:19:39Yeah, he went right in there and took us right in.
0:19:45 > 0:19:47Tom, you're the founder of gapyear.com.
0:19:47 > 0:19:51That was a pretty horrific story. Just how common is it?
0:19:51 > 0:19:54It's very rare. It's important to say that for any parents
0:19:54 > 0:19:57whose children are about to go travelling,
0:19:57 > 0:20:01"I don't think they should." But it is something that could be on the rise.
0:20:01 > 0:20:03The parents are often the target.
0:20:03 > 0:20:06The parent is the person at home with money in the account.
0:20:06 > 0:20:10People think, "I could get to the parents through the kids."
0:20:10 > 0:20:14There has to be a way for the parents to know it's a genuine email. What's the answer?
0:20:14 > 0:20:18We've seen a lot of code words. It's not new,
0:20:18 > 0:20:23the use of a code word to say are you genuine, Dom? Are you the person I know?
0:20:23 > 0:20:29So make up a fictitious member of the family. "How's Uncle Trevor?" Fit it in so it's a buzzword.
0:20:29 > 0:20:34"There is no Uncle Trevor", so there's something going wrong.
0:20:34 > 0:20:38From a parent's point of view, be aware that your child might be a target.
0:20:38 > 0:20:40And what you do if the worst happens.
0:20:40 > 0:20:44It's vital parents get involved in their children's trip.
0:20:44 > 0:20:46Especially for the younger gappers.
0:20:46 > 0:20:48"What do we do in an emergency?"
0:20:48 > 0:20:51Quite often it's a thing parents don't want to talk about.
0:20:51 > 0:20:56It's their worst nightmare that the child has problems thousands of miles from home.
0:20:56 > 0:21:01We advise everyone to have a list of embassies and addresses of where they're going
0:21:01 > 0:21:05- and give a copy to their parents. - A lot of people use internet cafes
0:21:05 > 0:21:07and could offload software there.
0:21:07 > 0:21:12- How do you get round that? - Obviously, when you're travelling, the system's not yours.
0:21:12 > 0:21:16And they can access your details. It's vital with digital travel
0:21:16 > 0:21:18that you secure everything.
0:21:18 > 0:21:23Don't give people access to your passwords, lock your Smartphone down.
0:21:23 > 0:21:26Access to your travel plans, your itinerary.
0:21:26 > 0:21:30If people know where you're going and know your home address -
0:21:30 > 0:21:33often it's written on our luggage, "This is where we live",
0:21:33 > 0:21:37they've got half the information they need to be able to scam you.
0:21:37 > 0:21:44It's doing the obvious things that we take for granted. If you don't do it at home, don't do it overseas.
0:21:49 > 0:21:54Still to come, the very harsh reality of accepting a fake job.
0:21:54 > 0:21:57It's pulled everything from under you.
0:21:57 > 0:22:00It's hard to put on a brave face.
0:22:00 > 0:22:04And the green-fingered in danger of losing their fingers
0:22:04 > 0:22:06with fake chainsaws.
0:22:06 > 0:22:10Wherever it touches, face, shoulder or neck,
0:22:10 > 0:22:13he's going to suffer a severe injury or possibly even death.
0:22:20 > 0:22:24We're back in the house in Wiltshire that's been raided by the police.
0:22:24 > 0:22:28Following a tip-off, they're looking for fake prescription drugs
0:22:28 > 0:22:31that have been imported from India and China.
0:22:31 > 0:22:35We're looking for any paperwork that relates to any transactions.
0:22:35 > 0:22:37Any drugs, pills, anything.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40Having found the packaging stashed in the wardrobe,
0:22:40 > 0:22:42they soon find the drugs.
0:22:42 > 0:22:47Is there any evidence of any counterfeit medication at the moment?
0:22:47 > 0:22:49- Neurazepam tablets, that one.- OK.
0:22:50 > 0:22:54But we've got a lot more of what looks like those under the bed.
0:22:54 > 0:22:58Everywhere the police look, there's evidence of drug use.
0:22:58 > 0:23:01Even in the cat's basket!
0:23:02 > 0:23:07There's evidence of drug use with discarded needles and bottles of methadone everywhere.
0:23:09 > 0:23:15They're finding thousands of fake tablets. All the drugs are illegal if not on prescription.
0:23:15 > 0:23:19We've got hundreds of packets of - I don't really know what it is.
0:23:19 > 0:23:23What do you reckon? Some form of Viagra, I'm guessing.
0:23:23 > 0:23:30But there's much more than fake Viagra - thousands of packets of prescription sleeping drugs,
0:23:30 > 0:23:36Zolpidem and Diazepam, as well as Lorazepam, which treats anxiety and insomnia
0:23:36 > 0:23:38and is unlicensed in the UK.
0:23:38 > 0:23:42Expert Phil Cottrell has led hundreds of investigations
0:23:42 > 0:23:45like the one that led to the raid in Wiltshire.
0:23:45 > 0:23:49They monitor what can be bought online and what is imported into the country.
0:23:49 > 0:23:54He's examining a batch of fake sleeping pills which his team bought online.
0:23:54 > 0:23:57This pack arrived a couple of days ago.
0:23:57 > 0:24:00It contains several blister strips of the product.
0:24:02 > 0:24:06This appears to be, on the face of it, Stilnox.
0:24:06 > 0:24:09The printing on the rear
0:24:09 > 0:24:11actually looks very good.
0:24:11 > 0:24:13However,
0:24:13 > 0:24:20I know the manufacturing date and the batch number portrayed on the strip are not genuine.
0:24:20 > 0:24:25The only way to really tell for sure is by getting them tested in a lab.
0:24:25 > 0:24:28All the drugs seized in the Wiltshire raid
0:24:28 > 0:24:31will also be tested to confirm if they are counterfeit.
0:24:31 > 0:24:36First, Phil takes some suspect prescription heart tablets that he bought on the internet
0:24:36 > 0:24:39to the anti-counterfeiting lab in France.
0:24:39 > 0:24:43If my suspicions are confirmed and they prove to be counterfeit,
0:24:43 > 0:24:48the implications for any patient or anybody taking these products could be dire.
0:24:50 > 0:24:53The scale of the problem is so big
0:24:53 > 0:24:57they've had to set up a high-tech lab especially to fight the counterfeiters.
0:24:57 > 0:25:04The World Health Organisation estimates that ten per cent of all the medicines in the world are fake.
0:25:05 > 0:25:10This lab alone examines 75,000 suspect packages a year.
0:25:10 > 0:25:13They're testing a drug called Plavix.
0:25:13 > 0:25:16The real drug is taken by patients who've had a stroke,
0:25:16 > 0:25:19have heart conditions or have high blood pressure.
0:25:19 > 0:25:23Patients rely on this medicine to keep their blood thin
0:25:23 > 0:25:25and prevent another stroke.
0:25:25 > 0:25:29If this medicine were fake, things could go very wrong.
0:25:29 > 0:25:31We've checked the batch number
0:25:31 > 0:25:34and see that the product batch number does not exist.
0:25:34 > 0:25:38The other difference we have observed on the pack
0:25:38 > 0:25:42is that there's no safety labels.
0:25:42 > 0:25:45They've proved the packaging is fake.
0:25:45 > 0:25:47But are the tablets dangerous?
0:25:47 > 0:25:51They crush and dissolve the tablets and analyse the chemical content
0:25:51 > 0:25:56with an infra-red spectroscope. Now they can see exactly what's gone into them
0:25:56 > 0:26:00and what patients are unknowingly putting into their mouths.
0:26:00 > 0:26:04The graph in red is the result obtained with the suspected product.
0:26:04 > 0:26:06It's very low
0:26:06 > 0:26:10compared to the blue one.
0:26:10 > 0:26:14This product is definitely a counterfeit medicine.
0:26:14 > 0:26:19So in this batch there is hardly any active ingredient in the pills.
0:26:19 > 0:26:22If you took these fake tablets with a heart condition,
0:26:22 > 0:26:26it could be fatal. But the dealers don't think about the patient.
0:26:26 > 0:26:29At the end of the day, they're in business to make money
0:26:29 > 0:26:32and they don't want to kill off their patients.
0:26:32 > 0:26:36However, they have no compassion for the people taking these fake medicines.
0:26:41 > 0:26:46Coming up, the fake electronics made in China which are heading for the UK.
0:26:46 > 0:26:49They're dangerous and potentially deadly.
0:26:49 > 0:26:54There are up to 30,000 electrical fires a year in the UK alone
0:26:54 > 0:26:56that can cause harm and even death.
0:27:05 > 0:27:08This is something you don't want to mess around with.
0:27:08 > 0:27:12Using a chainsaw is potentially a very dangerous thing.
0:27:12 > 0:27:16But one criminal gang ordered thousands of deadly fakes from China
0:27:16 > 0:27:18and then sold them right here in the UK.
0:27:18 > 0:27:21But what's really scary is the fact that many of these
0:27:21 > 0:27:26are still out there in people's garden sheds and they don't even know it.
0:27:30 > 0:27:35A few years ago, a horror movie was the closest most of us came to chainsaws.
0:27:37 > 0:27:41But with the DIY and gardening boom, sales have surged.
0:27:41 > 0:27:43Eager to cash in,
0:27:43 > 0:27:47factories in China have been churning out fakes of top name brands
0:27:47 > 0:27:49with deadly flaws.
0:27:50 > 0:27:53As PC Angus Wilson discovered on patrol in rural Dorset.
0:27:54 > 0:27:59In this job, you go out and you never know who you're going to stop or what you'll see.
0:27:59 > 0:28:03The officer pulled over an Italian driver with a faulty rear light.
0:28:03 > 0:28:05Then he opened the boot.
0:28:05 > 0:28:08He couldn't account for where the chainsaws had come from.
0:28:08 > 0:28:13He basically said he was just travelling round selling them.
0:28:13 > 0:28:17I believed because he couldn't account for them they may be stolen chainsaws.
0:28:17 > 0:28:23In fact, they were part of an £11 million flood of fake top-brand tools
0:28:23 > 0:28:24unleashed across Europe.
0:28:24 > 0:28:28A Mafia-style gang from Naples had shipped them in from China.
0:28:28 > 0:28:34We don't know what this product is going to do if we start it up. These could be lethal.
0:28:34 > 0:28:36With so many sold,
0:28:36 > 0:28:44Dorset Trading Standards feared novice gardeners had potentially taken deadly tools into their homes.
0:28:44 > 0:28:47They took them to professionals using genuine Stihl tools.
0:28:50 > 0:28:52I wouldn't want to use it!
0:28:52 > 0:28:54No. It's plastic.
0:28:54 > 0:28:59It looks like it could break off or even possibly jam,
0:28:59 > 0:29:04which, if it did jam, the chain's not going to stop spinning if the brake's off.
0:29:04 > 0:29:06You could cut your leg off or worse.
0:29:06 > 0:29:13Altogether, police raids have seized 800 tonnes of the gang's goods across Europe.
0:29:13 > 0:29:17Strict European safety checks are built in to the real thing.
0:29:17 > 0:29:20Crucially, something called a chain break
0:29:20 > 0:29:26stops the razor-sharp blade rotating if it kicks back towards your face.
0:29:26 > 0:29:32Manufacturers Stihl discovered fakes with their name on had no chain break.
0:29:32 > 0:29:36If the bar and chain comes back towards the operator at full speed,
0:29:36 > 0:29:40wherever it touches, face, shoulder or neck,
0:29:40 > 0:29:44he's going to suffer a severe injury or possibly even death.
0:29:44 > 0:29:47Next came tests on the handle above the rotating blade.
0:29:47 > 0:29:50This looks a very cheap plastic.
0:29:50 > 0:29:53The real one on the left, the fake on the right.
0:29:56 > 0:29:58In the pendulum test,
0:29:58 > 0:30:00this broke off.
0:30:00 > 0:30:03If that were to happen whilst somebody was using it,
0:30:03 > 0:30:09their hand could drop down onto the chain with severe consequences.
0:30:13 > 0:30:16In 32 years of using chainsaws,
0:30:16 > 0:30:19I've never come across such a shoddy chainsaw.
0:30:19 > 0:30:22And not only is it shoddy,
0:30:22 > 0:30:23but it's dangerous.
0:30:23 > 0:30:27Many of the people supplying these fakes have now been arrested.
0:30:27 > 0:30:34But beware. From Dusseldorf to Dorset, lots of these fakes have never been traced.
0:30:45 > 0:30:49High unemployment in the UK is bad news for the job market
0:30:49 > 0:30:51but good news for the crooks.
0:30:51 > 0:30:54They've reached a brand-new low -
0:30:54 > 0:30:56fake job offers.
0:30:56 > 0:30:59As Iain and his pregnant wife, Claire, found out.
0:30:59 > 0:31:03I heard I was going to be a dad and I thought it was fantastic.
0:31:03 > 0:31:05You want the best for your family.
0:31:05 > 0:31:10When you find out you're pregnant, you plan to buy a new pushchair,
0:31:10 > 0:31:15buy a new cot, new things for baby, decorate the baby's room.
0:31:15 > 0:31:21Look forward to having a new child in your life, basically.
0:31:21 > 0:31:24With a baby on the way, money was going to be tight,
0:31:24 > 0:31:26so Iain looked for a new job.
0:31:26 > 0:31:29I decided to look for employment
0:31:29 > 0:31:34that paid more money than what I was on to give our daughter a better start in life.
0:31:34 > 0:31:36I went searching on the internet
0:31:36 > 0:31:41and found through Directgov a job that stood out from the rest.
0:31:41 > 0:31:45He said, "I've seen this job. It's a brilliant job.
0:31:45 > 0:31:47"Something I want to do, something I can do.
0:31:47 > 0:31:51"Do you want me to apply for it?" I said, "Go for it."
0:31:51 > 0:31:54What Iain had found was a job with a £30,000 salary
0:31:54 > 0:31:58offering the chance to be a chauffeur to the stars.
0:31:58 > 0:32:00The interview went fantastic.
0:32:00 > 0:32:07As I was leaving he says, "Have you seen the vehicle you'll be driving if successful?" I said, "No."
0:32:07 > 0:32:10He says, "The car's outside. Have a look on the way out."
0:32:10 > 0:32:13It was a £70,000 BMW.
0:32:13 > 0:32:16He did tell me during the interview
0:32:16 > 0:32:21there was a £100 retainer, in case you lost the fuel card or car keys.
0:32:21 > 0:32:25Iain paid the £100 and waited for some news.
0:32:25 > 0:32:30The postman came and it was an acceptance letter and a contract.
0:32:32 > 0:32:34I felt on Cloud Nine.
0:32:34 > 0:32:42We just wanted to tell everybody, tell the world that he'd got this fantastic job.
0:32:42 > 0:32:47I thought, "I've landed on my feet." It was supposed to be a nine till five sort of job.
0:32:47 > 0:32:52I thought, "No weekend work. It'll be fantastic for the family."
0:32:52 > 0:32:57I was really looking forward to it from my previous job which was heavy graft.
0:32:57 > 0:33:04I handed my notice in at my employer. I thought I'd have a couple of weeks off before starting.
0:33:04 > 0:33:08I was expecting to get a letter just before I started saying where I needed to be,
0:33:08 > 0:33:12what I needed to be doing, whether I'd be doing some training.
0:33:12 > 0:33:16The week before I was due to start, I tried ringing them,
0:33:16 > 0:33:21went on the internet, got some contact numbers, and rang and rang. No response.
0:33:21 > 0:33:24After a couple of hours, it really sunk in
0:33:24 > 0:33:26that there was no job.
0:33:26 > 0:33:30Mark Shortland was the man behind this scam.
0:33:30 > 0:33:32He was a serial con man
0:33:32 > 0:33:35and had interviewed over 80 people across the whole of the UK,
0:33:35 > 0:33:38offering chauffeuring jobs to all of them
0:33:38 > 0:33:41and collecting their £100 retainers.
0:33:41 > 0:33:44But it wasn't just £100 that Iain lost.
0:33:44 > 0:33:48It was devastating. You have the rug ripped from under your feet.
0:33:48 > 0:33:53You've given up your employment to start your new job
0:33:53 > 0:33:55to find out it's just a scam.
0:33:55 > 0:33:58You know, it's horrific.
0:33:58 > 0:34:01Iain rung his old company where he used to work, the next day
0:34:01 > 0:34:05and asked them if he could have his old job back.
0:34:05 > 0:34:08They said they'd get back in touch in a couple of days,
0:34:08 > 0:34:12which they did and said there was no position for him now.
0:34:12 > 0:34:15I've no longer got any income whatsoever.
0:34:15 > 0:34:20But they weren't the only ones who were sucked in by serious fraudster Mark Shortland.
0:34:20 > 0:34:23DC Juliet Faram had been investigating him.
0:34:23 > 0:34:27Of course, we've then become aware of this matter
0:34:27 > 0:34:29and as a result arrested Mark.
0:34:29 > 0:34:32He was convicted and given a three-year sentence.
0:34:32 > 0:34:35His scores of victims have been left to pick up the pieces.
0:34:35 > 0:34:39They had gathered on fraud alert websites,
0:34:39 > 0:34:44allowing DC Faram to see the scale of devastation left in Mark Shortland's wake.
0:34:44 > 0:34:49There's so much on there from quite a few people who've been affected by it.
0:34:49 > 0:34:53I mean, this is today. This chap - I didn't mention him, actually -
0:34:53 > 0:34:58"Due to the stress of this scam happening, I've lost the sight in my eye, my right eye."
0:34:58 > 0:35:03And that was June. I did speak to him, actually,
0:35:03 > 0:35:08and he said it was through the stress of all that happened, he lost his sight.
0:35:10 > 0:35:15Like all the other victims, Iain and Claire have to rebuild their lives.
0:35:15 > 0:35:18With no salary and bills still to pay,
0:35:18 > 0:35:21they've had to sell their car which was on hire purchase,
0:35:21 > 0:35:23leaving them with another debt.
0:35:23 > 0:35:29Due to being on finance and losing my job, I couldn't keep up the payments any more.
0:35:29 > 0:35:34So I had to contact the finance company and ask them to come and collect it.
0:35:34 > 0:35:37It was gut-wrenching, you know.
0:35:37 > 0:35:39Behind on their rent,
0:35:39 > 0:35:44Iain and Claire have had no choice but to pack up and leave their home.
0:35:44 > 0:35:47Tomorrow we're leaving the property.
0:35:47 > 0:35:53Everything's been packed up and it's the final nail in the coffin.
0:35:54 > 0:35:57Everything you've worked for has just gone.
0:35:57 > 0:36:00- TEARFULLY:- It's hard to put on a brave face
0:36:00 > 0:36:02and carry a baby...
0:36:02 > 0:36:04Sorry.
0:36:08 > 0:36:12These things have happened and there's nothing I can do about it
0:36:12 > 0:36:17apart from drag myself back out of the gutter and try and get another job.
0:36:17 > 0:36:21And my wife's due to give birth, you know?
0:36:21 > 0:36:24From a man's perspective,
0:36:24 > 0:36:25um...
0:36:27 > 0:36:29..what can I provide?
0:36:37 > 0:36:40Mike, you're the chairman of Safer Jobs.
0:36:40 > 0:36:41Just how big an issue is it?
0:36:41 > 0:36:43The problem is on the rise now.
0:36:43 > 0:36:45We don't get to hear about every case
0:36:45 > 0:36:49because people are embarrassed about being duped out of money
0:36:49 > 0:36:50and being a victim of fraud.
0:36:50 > 0:36:55But the problem is on the rise because more people use the internet to look for a job
0:36:55 > 0:36:58and more people need to get into work in the economic climate.
0:36:58 > 0:37:03Are we saying every job on these sites is a fake, or are there genuine ones there?
0:37:03 > 0:37:06Absolutely not. There are many genuine jobs.
0:37:06 > 0:37:09There are about half a million jobs advertised online at the moment.
0:37:09 > 0:37:14Of course, the absolute bulk majority of those are completely genuine.
0:37:14 > 0:37:17But you need to look to some of the indicators to make sure
0:37:17 > 0:37:19that you don't fall into any of the traps.
0:37:19 > 0:37:24What can people who find themselves in this position do to protect themselves?
0:37:24 > 0:37:28Make sure that the company you're dealing with look like they're reputable.
0:37:28 > 0:37:35Look at the contact information, look at the quality of the advertising you're applying to.
0:37:35 > 0:37:39You don't want to be parting with any moment up front at all.
0:37:39 > 0:37:45And be very cautious of any personal information such as national insurance number, passport number.
0:37:50 > 0:37:54In the last series, we told the tragic story
0:37:54 > 0:37:58of how a youngster died after using a deadly fake charger bought for his Game Boy.
0:37:58 > 0:38:03Sadly, loads of dangerous electrical items are still flooding into Britain.
0:38:03 > 0:38:07Experts say it's only a matter of time before the next tragedy.
0:38:07 > 0:38:12Fake electrical products come in all shapes and sizes.
0:38:12 > 0:38:16We've seen fake hair straighteners and deadly fake chainsaws.
0:38:16 > 0:38:18I wouldn't use it.
0:38:18 > 0:38:20Cut your leg off or worse.
0:38:20 > 0:38:25They're all posing a threat to people in the UK and all imported from China.
0:38:25 > 0:38:32This is unseen footage from inside a factory in China which manufactures fake electrical goods
0:38:32 > 0:38:33destined for Britain.
0:38:33 > 0:38:37They're part of the 30-million-pounds'-worth of fake electricals
0:38:37 > 0:38:39which enter the UK every year.
0:38:39 > 0:38:42And each and every one of them is potentially deadly.
0:38:42 > 0:38:47Kevin Harris is a counterfeit investigator for the electrical industry.
0:38:47 > 0:38:50He's working undercover in China
0:38:50 > 0:38:54to try to stop the fakes from leaving the country in the first place
0:38:54 > 0:38:55so they can never reach Britain.
0:38:55 > 0:39:00I fear that the UK will become open house
0:39:00 > 0:39:01for fake goods,
0:39:01 > 0:39:05for cheap goods. We all want a cheap deal, of course,
0:39:05 > 0:39:07but not at the expense of safety.
0:39:07 > 0:39:10The figures that we have for deaths and electrical fires,
0:39:10 > 0:39:12I can see them soaring.
0:39:12 > 0:39:14At this factory in China,
0:39:14 > 0:39:17they're making thousands of plug sockets every day.
0:39:17 > 0:39:22So we go along to the trader or the factory, we pose as a potential buyer
0:39:22 > 0:39:25of these counterfeit products.
0:39:25 > 0:39:28They don't comply with British safety standards.
0:39:28 > 0:39:30But that doesn't stop them.
0:39:30 > 0:39:34They will put on any brand, any mark, any certification mark.
0:39:34 > 0:39:40They have no respect, no regard, and no thought about your safety.
0:39:40 > 0:39:44In this warehouse, they find lots of counterfeit British brands.
0:39:44 > 0:39:49There's also stacks of fake packaging that the counterfeits were going to be shipped in.
0:39:49 > 0:39:52This is Volex over here. It's all Volex.
0:39:54 > 0:39:56Yes, and there. Over there.
0:39:57 > 0:40:02It's easy to see the scale of the problem, and Kevin and his group have their hands full.
0:40:02 > 0:40:05It's a culture issue. It's an enforcement issue.
0:40:05 > 0:40:10Hundreds of thousands of products are seized by our group every month.
0:40:10 > 0:40:16In the ten years that I've been doing this work, 14 million products have been seized and destroyed.
0:40:16 > 0:40:20They're all counterfeit and all highly dangerous.
0:40:20 > 0:40:25It's reported there are approximately 50 deaths per year caused by electrical incidents.
0:40:25 > 0:40:29There are up to 30,000 electrical fires a year in the UK alone.
0:40:29 > 0:40:32They can cause harm and even death.
0:40:32 > 0:40:35Finding the fake goods isn't enough for Kevin.
0:40:35 > 0:40:41At present, when we go to China, we have to operate a "cradle to grave" operation.
0:40:41 > 0:40:46We have to see the products being destroyed. It's the end product of our work.
0:40:46 > 0:40:49But the work goes on. These products are dangerous.
0:40:54 > 0:40:59Back in Wiltshire, the police have raided an ordinary suburban house
0:40:59 > 0:41:01and are looking for fake medicines.
0:41:01 > 0:41:08The suspect is arrested on suspicion of importing, supplying and selling prescription drugs without a licence
0:41:08 > 0:41:11and fraud by selling fake Viagra.
0:41:11 > 0:41:14To check that nothing has been missed by the team,
0:41:14 > 0:41:17they bring in Griff, their star player.
0:41:17 > 0:41:22The police had to safely remove the needles so the dog could have a rummage.
0:41:22 > 0:41:27He sniffs around for any drugs they might have missed in all this mess.
0:41:28 > 0:41:33He showed some interest in there, but it might be that drugs were stored there at one point.
0:41:33 > 0:41:37The team have done their job well. There's nothing left for Griff to find
0:41:37 > 0:41:40except some left-over pizza.
0:41:41 > 0:41:45But the drugs they have found are worth around £15,000.
0:41:45 > 0:41:47This is a considerable find.
0:41:47 > 0:41:54It backs up the intelligence that's been gathered over several months regarding the subject.
0:41:54 > 0:41:59It's really in this front bedroom was a considerable amount of what we were looking for.
0:42:01 > 0:42:05They continue their search to see if they've missed any crucial evidence.
0:42:05 > 0:42:08We've got the exhibits, but we're still looking.
0:42:08 > 0:42:10They've bagged and tagged the evidence
0:42:10 > 0:42:13and will work with the pharmaceutical companies
0:42:13 > 0:42:17to clamp down on fake drugs being imported into the UK.
0:42:18 > 0:42:22Although they've seized almost 5,000 tablets,
0:42:22 > 0:42:25it's a tiny drop in the illegal £50 million industry.
0:42:27 > 0:42:31It's such a big problem that the World Health Organisation
0:42:31 > 0:42:35believes that over half of all the medicine you can buy online is fake.
0:42:36 > 0:42:42It could be going on anywhere in back rooms, garages and suburban homes just like this one.
0:42:42 > 0:42:47All across the UK, dealers are importing these dangerous drugs
0:42:47 > 0:42:49and putting our lives at risk.
0:42:55 > 0:42:57That's all from Fake Britain today.
0:42:57 > 0:42:58Bye for now!
0:43:19 > 0:43:22Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd