0:00:02 > 0:00:07Welcome to a world where nothing is quite as it seems.
0:00:07 > 0:00:09Welcome to Fake Britain.
0:00:25 > 0:00:28In this series, I'm going to be investigating
0:00:28 > 0:00:31the world of the criminals who make their money at your expense.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34And I'm going to show you how not to get ripped off.
0:00:34 > 0:00:37Today on Fake Britain,
0:00:37 > 0:00:41the fake tours of the battlefields cheating British veterans...
0:00:41 > 0:00:46How he could be so evil, to me, is just disgusting.
0:00:46 > 0:00:49..on the trail of the banknote forgers...
0:00:49 > 0:00:51Police!
0:00:51 > 0:00:54Taken together, this is all the kit, the paraphernalia
0:00:54 > 0:00:57you would actually use to produce and make counterfeit currency.
0:00:57 > 0:00:59..the terrifying new credit card fakery
0:00:59 > 0:01:01that's almost completely undetectable...
0:01:01 > 0:01:03The shops couldn't tell the difference,
0:01:03 > 0:01:06some banks couldn't tell the difference.
0:01:06 > 0:01:08You and me? We've got no chance.
0:01:13 > 0:01:15SIREN WAILS
0:01:15 > 0:01:19It's early morning and the City Of London Police are out in force.
0:01:19 > 0:01:21Today, they're raiding a number of addresses
0:01:21 > 0:01:24to try and find a master forger.
0:01:24 > 0:01:27He's believed to be the head of a gang producing
0:01:27 > 0:01:28huge amounts of fake money.
0:01:28 > 0:01:32DC Steve Briars hopes to finally track him down.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36The amount of currency that is being produced by these people
0:01:36 > 0:01:40may well run into the millions and millions of pounds.
0:01:40 > 0:01:44The man we're looking for today is, we think,
0:01:44 > 0:01:45the mastermind behind this operation.
0:01:45 > 0:01:50We're expecting to find all manner of items, really,
0:01:50 > 0:01:52related to forgery and counterfeiting,
0:01:52 > 0:01:57that he is a master forger, so to speak.
0:01:58 > 0:02:00As the officers arrive at the location,
0:02:00 > 0:02:03they're met by some serious backup.
0:02:03 > 0:02:06The tactical support group are specialist door-breakers
0:02:06 > 0:02:08and after two officers silently crack the lock
0:02:08 > 0:02:10with a pneumatic door-breaking kit,
0:02:10 > 0:02:15a third, carrying a heavy enforcer, quickly gets the job done.
0:02:17 > 0:02:19Police! Get down!
0:02:19 > 0:02:24The 6am start has literally caught the suspect with his pants down
0:02:24 > 0:02:27and upstairs, the officers drag him from his bed.
0:02:27 > 0:02:30Put some trousers on, mate. Which trousers? These ones?
0:02:30 > 0:02:31- Yes?- Yeah.
0:02:31 > 0:02:33Put that on first.
0:02:33 > 0:02:34Hold your hands out for me.
0:02:34 > 0:02:36I'm arresting you on suspicion
0:02:36 > 0:02:39of conspiracy to produce counterfeit currency.
0:02:39 > 0:02:42The man they've arrested is Anthony Higgs,
0:02:42 > 0:02:43who's already been in prison before
0:02:43 > 0:02:46for conspiring to make counterfeit currency.
0:02:46 > 0:02:47As Higgs is taken downstairs,
0:02:47 > 0:02:52a quick glance around the bedroom hints at forgery.
0:02:52 > 0:02:53What's interesting with this note,
0:02:53 > 0:02:56is that sitting on top of it is actually one of the jeweller's optics
0:02:56 > 0:02:58that they use to study fine detail.
0:02:58 > 0:03:04So I'm guessing that somebody's been studying this note very carefully.
0:03:06 > 0:03:09The room is also full of
0:03:09 > 0:03:12a variety of professional-quality printers, inks and papers.
0:03:12 > 0:03:13The latest prints,
0:03:13 > 0:03:15like the many bits of paper scattered on the floor,
0:03:15 > 0:03:18are covered in small red colour samples.
0:03:18 > 0:03:23These look very similar to the shades of red used on £50 notes.
0:03:23 > 0:03:27It would appear that they've been trying to colour-match the note here
0:03:27 > 0:03:31in order to potentially run off copies of these notes
0:03:31 > 0:03:33for fraudulent purposes.
0:03:33 > 0:03:36They've got quite a good print shop going on
0:03:36 > 0:03:37in this person's bedroom here.
0:03:37 > 0:03:41Downstairs, master forger Higgs is cooperating with the police.
0:03:41 > 0:03:44So, what's this all about?
0:03:44 > 0:03:46What we'll do for now is keep you in here...
0:03:46 > 0:03:49- Yeah.- Just going to put a dog through your premises...- Yeah.
0:03:49 > 0:03:51..and then we'll have a bit more of a chat, all right?
0:03:51 > 0:03:53A police dog is brought in
0:03:53 > 0:03:56to sniff out whether there is cash hidden in the property.
0:03:56 > 0:04:00It's possible that there may be large quantities of money in the house.
0:04:00 > 0:04:02The dogs can smell in places that we can't see,
0:04:02 > 0:04:07so they'll hopefully find any items in here
0:04:07 > 0:04:11and at least give the officers an idea of where to go and have a look.
0:04:11 > 0:04:13As the dog searches the house,
0:04:13 > 0:04:16he quickly sniffs out something significant.
0:04:16 > 0:04:19It looks like a safe, here in the corner. Yeah, it is a safe.
0:04:19 > 0:04:23In this case, it would be genuine cash
0:04:23 > 0:04:27so there may be a very large sum of money inside this item here.
0:04:27 > 0:04:30Higgs is brought upstairs to open his safe.
0:04:30 > 0:04:34Inside, there's a large quantity of cash, the spoils of a life of crime.
0:04:39 > 0:04:42And downstairs, police continue the search for more.
0:04:42 > 0:04:48Cash be hidden in small places in large quantities.
0:04:48 > 0:04:50£50 notes are not very big things
0:04:50 > 0:04:53and that's why they've checked everywhere that they can
0:04:53 > 0:04:55to make sure that there's nowhere, like a loose brick,
0:04:55 > 0:04:58with a little stash hidden behind them.
0:04:58 > 0:05:00Meanwhile, in another bedroom,
0:05:00 > 0:05:05officers find yet more evidence of forgery on an industrial scale.
0:05:05 > 0:05:07Normally, you'd only have, say, a maximum of two printers,
0:05:07 > 0:05:12but he's got three in there, another probably...
0:05:12 > 0:05:14five or six in here.
0:05:14 > 0:05:18So the only possible reason for having all these printers
0:05:18 > 0:05:21is he's either trying to set up a large amount of production
0:05:21 > 0:05:24or he has been having a large amount of production.
0:05:24 > 0:05:27If fake notes are being printed here,
0:05:27 > 0:05:30the officers believe the machinery to compress, cut,
0:05:30 > 0:05:33foil and finish them must be somewhere else.
0:05:33 > 0:05:38Later, they go searching for a crucial piece of evidence -
0:05:38 > 0:05:43a specialist industrial presser needed to make fake banknotes.
0:05:50 > 0:05:53The battlefields of the First and Second World Wars
0:05:53 > 0:05:57are destinations that are not only historical tourist attractions,
0:05:57 > 0:06:02but also sites that are, for many, a place of pilgrimage and remembrance.
0:06:02 > 0:06:05Veterans travel there to say farewell to fallen comrades
0:06:05 > 0:06:10and family members go to visit the site of the historical battles
0:06:10 > 0:06:12where their loved ones fought.
0:06:12 > 0:06:14But battlefield tours are big business
0:06:14 > 0:06:18and even such an emotional subject is not immune to the fakers.
0:06:20 > 0:06:23The Fife branch of the Parachute Regiment
0:06:23 > 0:06:25received a lottery grant of £10,000
0:06:25 > 0:06:29to travel to the battlefield of Arnhem in the Netherlands.
0:06:29 > 0:06:33It was the 65th anniversary of the Battle of Arnhem.
0:06:33 > 0:06:37The reason being that the people who fought at Arnhem,
0:06:37 > 0:06:40it was pivotal to the forming of a regiment,
0:06:40 > 0:06:44and making the regiment as famous as it is now.
0:06:44 > 0:06:47It was very important that we got our veterans there
0:06:47 > 0:06:50to revisit the war graves where their comrades had fallen
0:06:50 > 0:06:53and to revisit the place where they actually fought in battle
0:06:53 > 0:06:57and, as I say, it was probably the last opportunity for them to do that.
0:06:57 > 0:07:01Petty officer John Jack was one of the lucky ones
0:07:01 > 0:07:04who made it home from the Second World War,
0:07:04 > 0:07:05and his son, Daniel,
0:07:05 > 0:07:08wanted to visit the site where his father had fought.
0:07:08 > 0:07:12My father had been in the original D-Day landings in 1944.
0:07:12 > 0:07:16He was a Petty officer on the big LST landing ships
0:07:16 > 0:07:18and this was the 65th anniversary
0:07:18 > 0:07:21and obviously, it was going to be a real final big hoo-ha,
0:07:21 > 0:07:23and that was the main reason.
0:07:23 > 0:07:26And for Sandra and Malcolm Buchan, the trip was a dream
0:07:26 > 0:07:29that they'd had for a while.
0:07:29 > 0:07:31My husband's always wanted to go,
0:07:31 > 0:07:35just to see it, so that was why we decided,
0:07:35 > 0:07:39right, it was a short trip - six days. We'll just do that.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42They each came across a Scottish company
0:07:42 > 0:07:46offering European battlefield tours and wanted to find out more.
0:07:46 > 0:07:49I received this brochure -
0:07:49 > 0:07:51European Tours Ltd -
0:07:51 > 0:07:53and it was advertising various different holidays,
0:07:53 > 0:07:57Flanders, The Somme, Normandy, Arnhem.
0:07:57 > 0:07:59The social secretary made the initial contact
0:07:59 > 0:08:01and they reported back to the branch
0:08:01 > 0:08:05that he had found this company who was willing to take us to Arnhem
0:08:05 > 0:08:09and basically fitted the bill for everything that we required.
0:08:09 > 0:08:14The brochure seemed to be good, well presented.
0:08:14 > 0:08:16Exactly what we wanted.
0:08:16 > 0:08:18It seemed perfect.
0:08:18 > 0:08:21On finding the tour to their satisfaction,
0:08:21 > 0:08:24they all decided to take the plunge and book it.
0:08:24 > 0:08:27We paid a deposit of £3,400.
0:08:27 > 0:08:30And that was to cover the deposit for 28 people to travel to Arnhem,
0:08:30 > 0:08:34obviously on a return trip.
0:08:34 > 0:08:38The whole cost of my holiday was £504.
0:08:38 > 0:08:42For everything that was covered, it seemed fair enough.
0:08:42 > 0:08:44That was the travel from Glasgow down to Hull,
0:08:44 > 0:08:46overnight on the ferry.
0:08:46 > 0:08:50It was four nights in the Normandy area
0:08:50 > 0:08:52and then travel back again.
0:08:52 > 0:08:56It was, um, £789.
0:08:56 > 0:09:01It seemed a good price for the two of us for six days.
0:09:01 > 0:09:03It seemed quite reasonable.
0:09:03 > 0:09:06With the money paid, and a slight worry in his mind,
0:09:06 > 0:09:09Bill Donaldson invited John Lennox to his house
0:09:09 > 0:09:11to answer a few questions.
0:09:11 > 0:09:15When he came in, he had T-shirts, teddy bears, little mugs.
0:09:15 > 0:09:21A book which showed previous trips to the battlefield.
0:09:21 > 0:09:26The battlefields... Not just Holland - Germany, France, Belgium.
0:09:26 > 0:09:29We thought, everything's looking good - maybe we're wrong.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32Daniel only realised a week before he was due to leave
0:09:32 > 0:09:35that he had no tickets for his trip.
0:09:35 > 0:09:40I think it was about the week before, an itinerary came in.
0:09:40 > 0:09:45And I thought, "OK, right. Here we go."
0:09:45 > 0:09:47But it had all been so lackadaisical
0:09:47 > 0:09:51that I kind of thought, "Is this really going to happen?"
0:09:51 > 0:09:52And, for Sandra and Malcolm,
0:09:52 > 0:09:55a last-minute change made them feel anxious
0:09:55 > 0:09:57about the future of their holiday.
0:09:58 > 0:10:04On the day we were leaving, it was about 7 o'clock. Just after seven.
0:10:04 > 0:10:09And he said, "Hello, this is John Lennox from European Tours.
0:10:09 > 0:10:12"I'm just phoning to let you know that the bus has broke down
0:10:12 > 0:10:16"and it's running late but it will arrive."
0:10:19 > 0:10:22But when Bill Donaldson made a phone call to P&O Ferries,
0:10:22 > 0:10:25they realised that their whole trip was a fake.
0:10:25 > 0:10:27We contacted P&O Ferries
0:10:27 > 0:10:30just to find out if any deposits had been paid.
0:10:30 > 0:10:34Um, they had heard of Lennox previously
0:10:34 > 0:10:37for other things that he was supposed to have booked.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40It seems he always made a cursory inquiry
0:10:40 > 0:10:43into how much it would cost to book cabins -
0:10:43 > 0:10:46how much it would cost to get from A to B,
0:10:46 > 0:10:48but never, ever paid a deposit.
0:10:49 > 0:10:52Brian Rees at P&O Ferries received word
0:10:52 > 0:10:54that the Parachute Regiment had been left in the lurch.
0:10:54 > 0:10:58We heard right at the last minute. It was only about 24 hours
0:10:58 > 0:11:02before the Paras were due to travel that the alarm call came.
0:11:02 > 0:11:05No coach, no ferry, no hotel booking.
0:11:05 > 0:11:09Up until 10 o'clock that night, we still thought the trip was doomed.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12I stepped in and said, "Look, you've got to go.
0:11:12 > 0:11:14"We've got space on the ferry.
0:11:14 > 0:11:17"You will go with the compliments of P&O Ferries."
0:11:18 > 0:11:22When we got the news, I was elated.
0:11:22 > 0:11:25The branch wasn't aware at that time that we weren't going to Arnhem.
0:11:25 > 0:11:28We kept it from them until the very last minute.
0:11:28 > 0:11:31We said, "Well, we might have to tell them on the morning
0:11:31 > 0:11:33"that's it a non-starter."
0:11:33 > 0:11:35But luckily enough, that night we got the good news,
0:11:35 > 0:11:37we were going to Arnhem.
0:11:37 > 0:11:39Over the moon - I had a few whiskies that night!
0:11:39 > 0:11:41It was brilliant.
0:11:41 > 0:11:44While the Parachute Regiment were lucky enough to take their trip,
0:11:44 > 0:11:47Sandra and Malcolm were left waiting at the bus stop
0:11:47 > 0:11:50for a bus that was never going to arrive.
0:11:50 > 0:11:52You believe people, don't you?
0:11:52 > 0:11:55We sat there and sat there and sat there.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58All these people getting on trains and buses...
0:11:58 > 0:12:01- And we're still sitting there. - Still sitting there.
0:12:01 > 0:12:03We just felt fooled.
0:12:03 > 0:12:05I think we realised the time from where we are
0:12:05 > 0:12:10to Carlisle, to meet a feeder coach to Hull,
0:12:10 > 0:12:12we were never going to make that ferry.
0:12:12 > 0:12:16But in Daniel's case, he actually met Ian Lennox at the bus station
0:12:16 > 0:12:18and waited with him there.
0:12:18 > 0:12:22We were to meet opposite the bus station at Glasgow Concert Hall.
0:12:22 > 0:12:25And I just got there,
0:12:25 > 0:12:27and here, as I came out at Buchanan Bus Station,
0:12:27 > 0:12:30here's this chap, introduces himself as Ian Lennox.
0:12:30 > 0:12:33Embroidered on his chest, "European Battlefield Tours".
0:12:33 > 0:12:37And I thought, "Great!" I suddenly was, "It is happening. We're off."
0:12:37 > 0:12:41Half an hour went past, 45 minutes went past,
0:12:41 > 0:12:43he was making phone calls.
0:12:43 > 0:12:46"Oh, the bus has broken down.
0:12:46 > 0:12:50And then, "Oh, we'll try and get another bus.
0:12:50 > 0:12:54"I'll phone up Hull and see if we can get another ferry."
0:12:54 > 0:12:56This went on and on and on -
0:12:56 > 0:12:59I think it was about an hour and a half, two hours,
0:12:59 > 0:13:02and then he says, "No, I'm sorry, the bus isn't going to make it."
0:13:02 > 0:13:04Even after taking their money
0:13:04 > 0:13:07and leaving them stranded by the side of the road,
0:13:07 > 0:13:09he still continued to lie
0:13:09 > 0:13:12to put off his capture off for as long as possible.
0:13:12 > 0:13:16Six days later, when we should have arrived back in Britain,
0:13:16 > 0:13:21he phoned me that morning to say that he had taken a different coach -
0:13:21 > 0:13:23a different coach - to a different place
0:13:23 > 0:13:24and he had just heard.
0:13:24 > 0:13:27And his phone didn't work when he was abroad
0:13:27 > 0:13:29and that's how he couldn't get messages
0:13:29 > 0:13:31and he was phoning to apologise.
0:13:31 > 0:13:34He was mad and livid at the bus company
0:13:34 > 0:13:37and we would definitely get our money back.
0:13:37 > 0:13:40John Lennox's lies finally caught up with him
0:13:40 > 0:13:43and, after two years of ripping off innocent people,
0:13:43 > 0:13:47with his fake battlefield tours, for tens of thousands of pounds,
0:13:47 > 0:13:49he was arrested and charged with theft.
0:13:49 > 0:13:55He pleaded guilty in court and was sentenced to 25 months in prison.
0:13:55 > 0:13:58But, for Sandra and Malcolm, this fake trip
0:13:58 > 0:14:03has ruined their chances of ever visiting the battlefields.
0:14:03 > 0:14:06Two or three years ago, my husband would be able to walk round
0:14:06 > 0:14:09um, the trenches and things,
0:14:09 > 0:14:12but because of his ill health now,
0:14:12 > 0:14:14no, he wouldn't be able to.
0:14:14 > 0:14:18So, I don't think we will be able to. That was our opportunity to go
0:14:18 > 0:14:21and I don't think that will happen again.
0:14:21 > 0:14:24John Lennox is now behind bars,
0:14:24 > 0:14:26but the legacy of what he did lives on.
0:14:37 > 0:14:38At Victoria Coach Station in London,
0:14:38 > 0:14:40Richard Maynard and his team
0:14:40 > 0:14:43from the Dedicated Cheque and Plastic Crime Unit
0:14:43 > 0:14:46recently discovered an audacious plan
0:14:46 > 0:14:48to smuggle devices into the country
0:14:48 > 0:14:50that would create fake chip-and-PIN terminals
0:14:50 > 0:14:54and threaten the security of Britain's whole payment system.
0:14:54 > 0:14:58And there was one particular criminal they had their eye on.
0:14:58 > 0:15:02Thomas Beeckman moves around most of the world.
0:15:02 > 0:15:05As far as we're aware, he has connections in the Far East,
0:15:05 > 0:15:09the Low Countries of Europe and in the United Kingdom.
0:15:09 > 0:15:13We were aware of the fact that he was moving in and out of UK,
0:15:13 > 0:15:15through our work with the Borders Agency,
0:15:15 > 0:15:18and that he was meeting with members of organised crime in the UK.
0:15:18 > 0:15:22Richard's team had been monitoring Beeckman's movements for a while
0:15:22 > 0:15:25and it wasn't long before they'd received word
0:15:25 > 0:15:27that he was on his way to Britain.
0:15:27 > 0:15:32We became aware that he was about to enter the country on a coach,
0:15:32 > 0:15:34through the Channel Tunnel,
0:15:34 > 0:15:37and this was our opportunity to try and detain him and arrest him
0:15:37 > 0:15:43for the offence of compromising and possession of articles used in fraud.
0:15:43 > 0:15:46In the early evening, around 6.30pm-6.45pm he arrived here,
0:15:46 > 0:15:48at the coach station, in the arrivals section,
0:15:48 > 0:15:51on a coach directly from the Channel Tunnel,
0:15:51 > 0:15:55where he was met by myself and a colleague, DC Richard New.
0:15:55 > 0:15:58He was detained for the purposes of a search
0:15:58 > 0:15:59and taken to a nearby police station.
0:15:59 > 0:16:01Beeckman was searched
0:16:01 > 0:16:06and found to be in possession of several strange electronic devices.
0:16:06 > 0:16:08The first thing that we came across
0:16:08 > 0:16:12that really alerted our suspicion as to his activities was this,
0:16:12 > 0:16:15a photograph of a printed circuit board
0:16:15 > 0:16:20encased in a flash memory case that you would buy normally.
0:16:20 > 0:16:23It is powered up by a watch battery
0:16:23 > 0:16:26that's connected to it by the wires you can see.
0:16:26 > 0:16:29These wires are left dangling because they're ready to go
0:16:29 > 0:16:32to be connected up to the back of a circuit board,
0:16:32 > 0:16:33inside a PIN-entry device.
0:16:33 > 0:16:37Richard believes that criminal gangs across Europe
0:16:37 > 0:16:41had been stealing chip-and-PIN terminals from shops and restaurants
0:16:41 > 0:16:43and bringing them here to the UK,
0:16:43 > 0:16:47where they would be secretly loaded with this devious technology.
0:16:47 > 0:16:52Steven Murdoch from Cambridge University can explain how it works.
0:16:52 > 0:16:55The easiest way to put additional electronics in
0:16:55 > 0:16:59is in this large hole in the back of the device.
0:16:59 > 0:17:02It is designed for manufacturer-added equipment,
0:17:02 > 0:17:07but it can be equally used for malicious equipment.
0:17:07 > 0:17:09And by drilling a hole in the case,
0:17:09 > 0:17:12like we've done here,
0:17:12 > 0:17:18the bad electronics here can connect to the smartcard
0:17:18 > 0:17:23and therefore get full copies of the card details and the PIN.
0:17:23 > 0:17:26The corrupted chip-and-PIN device is then put back into a shop
0:17:26 > 0:17:30and will be used as normal by members of the public.
0:17:30 > 0:17:32Terrifyingly, these devices
0:17:32 > 0:17:34were also fitted with Bluetooth technology,
0:17:34 > 0:17:39meaning the crooks need never go back to the scene of the crime.
0:17:39 > 0:17:42We believe the blue item on the printed circuit board
0:17:42 > 0:17:45is a Bluetooth-transmitting hardware.
0:17:45 > 0:17:48The machine, therefore, works properly
0:17:48 > 0:17:52but also records the card details from the magnetic stripe
0:17:52 > 0:17:54and the PIN number, as entered.
0:17:54 > 0:17:57Then that information is transmitted
0:17:57 > 0:18:00to the organised crime gang member's telephone or laptop,
0:18:00 > 0:18:04as long as he's nearby, within Bluetooth range.
0:18:04 > 0:18:08And once the crooks have collected your bank details and PIN number,
0:18:08 > 0:18:12they then make fake cards loaded with all your details.
0:18:12 > 0:18:16A cloned card with a magnetic stripe on the back,
0:18:16 > 0:18:19can then be used to purchase goods, or if the PIN number is accessed,
0:18:19 > 0:18:23they can then be used in ATMs to access cash straight away
0:18:23 > 0:18:27from that account, until it's closed down by the bank.
0:18:27 > 0:18:30With the thousands of bank cards they are able to clone in this way,
0:18:30 > 0:18:34police estimate the fakers could steal tens of millions of pounds.
0:18:34 > 0:18:38The implications for the individual are very serious.
0:18:38 > 0:18:40The compromise of someone's account
0:18:40 > 0:18:42may or may not be noticed immediately,
0:18:42 > 0:18:44and that account can get emptied out.
0:18:44 > 0:18:46But for Thomas Beeckman, the game was up,
0:18:46 > 0:18:50as Richard and his team had stopped this fraud in its tracks.
0:18:50 > 0:18:52And even though Beeckman refused to reveal
0:18:52 > 0:18:54the encryption key to his laptop,
0:18:54 > 0:18:57officers were able to use this as an admission of guilt
0:18:57 > 0:18:59in his court case.
0:18:59 > 0:19:00Beeckman received 18 months
0:19:00 > 0:19:03for the possession of articles for use in fraud,
0:19:03 > 0:19:04and a further six months
0:19:04 > 0:19:07for failing to reveal the encryption key to the police.
0:19:07 > 0:19:09In this case,
0:19:09 > 0:19:12the police believed the devices were destined for Europe,
0:19:12 > 0:19:14but computer security expert Ross Anderson
0:19:14 > 0:19:19believes that tampered chip-and-PIN devices are already in the UK,
0:19:19 > 0:19:22but that the banks would never admit it.
0:19:22 > 0:19:24The view internally in the banks
0:19:24 > 0:19:28is that, OK, there's a bit of fraud, but you can't possibly admit it.
0:19:28 > 0:19:31What bankers say internally
0:19:31 > 0:19:35is that if they ever admitted that their systems weren't secure,
0:19:35 > 0:19:38then there would be an avalanche of fraudulent claims of fraud.
0:19:38 > 0:19:40They're terrified that lots of people
0:19:40 > 0:19:44would start disavowing transactions that they had actually made.
0:19:44 > 0:19:47This would cause the system to collapse in chaos.
0:19:47 > 0:19:49And unfortunately for us,
0:19:49 > 0:19:54it's almost impossible to tell which devices are fake and which are real.
0:19:54 > 0:19:57There's no practical way,
0:19:57 > 0:19:59for a man in the street,
0:19:59 > 0:20:04to tell the difference between a genuine chip-and-PIN machine,
0:20:04 > 0:20:06and a genuine chip-and-PIN machine that's been tampered with,
0:20:06 > 0:20:08if it's been done properly.
0:20:08 > 0:20:11Let's face it, the shops couldn't tell the difference,
0:20:11 > 0:20:14some banks couldn't tell the difference. You and me?
0:20:14 > 0:20:16We've got no chance.
0:20:21 > 0:20:26Back on the trail of the suspected money-forgers,
0:20:26 > 0:20:29officers are searching for the materials and machinery needed
0:20:29 > 0:20:31to produce fake banknotes.
0:20:31 > 0:20:34They have already arrested the gang leader, Anthony Higgs,
0:20:34 > 0:20:37and found a number of expensive printers and test prints
0:20:37 > 0:20:38at his house.
0:20:38 > 0:20:39But today's operation
0:20:39 > 0:20:42is also targeting a number of other locations
0:20:42 > 0:20:45believed to be related to the gang's crimes.
0:20:45 > 0:20:49DC Bell is searching the flat of one of Higgs' accomplices
0:20:49 > 0:20:52and evidence found inside a cupboard in the living room suggests
0:20:52 > 0:20:56that part of the fake money-making process happens right here.
0:20:56 > 0:20:57There's a brown case here
0:20:57 > 0:21:00that has rolls and rolls and rolls of various papers,
0:21:00 > 0:21:02you can see the silver foil there.
0:21:02 > 0:21:05Classically, this would be the type of foil used
0:21:05 > 0:21:07to make counterfeit currency.
0:21:07 > 0:21:09To put the strip into the actual note itself.
0:21:09 > 0:21:11This is very expensive.
0:21:11 > 0:21:15It's very hard to get hold of, only made by a small amount of companies
0:21:15 > 0:21:17and it's classically part of a money-making kit.
0:21:18 > 0:21:21The bag the specialist foil was found in
0:21:21 > 0:21:24also contains a number of half-used and empty rolls.
0:21:24 > 0:21:27DC Bell believes this is good evidence,
0:21:27 > 0:21:30and that these may already have been used to produce
0:21:30 > 0:21:32a large quantity of fakes.
0:21:32 > 0:21:35Suddenly something else in the cupboard catches his eye.
0:21:35 > 0:21:40This is not your typical printer photocopier paper.
0:21:40 > 0:21:44This is a high-grade paper which is used to actually produce the money.
0:21:45 > 0:21:48The find in the cupboard is equally important.
0:21:48 > 0:21:50It's an industrial compressor,
0:21:50 > 0:21:52used with the paper and rolls of foil
0:21:52 > 0:21:56to try and imitate the foil strips found in real banknotes.
0:21:56 > 0:21:59This cupboard contains all the vital parts
0:21:59 > 0:22:00about making the money believable
0:22:00 > 0:22:03and passable on the public.
0:22:03 > 0:22:04All right, no worries.
0:22:04 > 0:22:09Back at Higgs' house an officer searching the hallway
0:22:09 > 0:22:12has found some suspicious bankers' draughts.
0:22:12 > 0:22:16DC Briars takes them outside to check if they're forgeries.
0:22:16 > 0:22:18They're exactly the same numbers.
0:22:18 > 0:22:20Yeah, you wouldn't get the same one.
0:22:20 > 0:22:25You can see the quality of the printing isn't sharp, that's dodgy.
0:22:26 > 0:22:30Passable fake bankers' drafts could be very valuable documents indeed.
0:22:30 > 0:22:34Also known as cashier's cheques, they are issued by banks
0:22:34 > 0:22:38and are instantly cashable in any other bank around the world.
0:22:38 > 0:22:42If perfected, these fakes would be like having access
0:22:42 > 0:22:44to almost unlimited money.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47In the search for the equipment used in the forging process,
0:22:47 > 0:22:49DC Bell has travelled to a rented lock-up,
0:22:49 > 0:22:53known to be used by Higgs and his gang.
0:22:53 > 0:22:56He's hoping to find the final pieces of evidence he needs
0:22:56 > 0:22:58behind this door.
0:23:00 > 0:23:04OK. We've got a wooden unit here which has been screwed shut,
0:23:04 > 0:23:07so what we're going to do is just open this one up,
0:23:07 > 0:23:09and see what we can find inside.
0:23:11 > 0:23:14Just trying to gauge what we've got here.
0:23:16 > 0:23:20What it looks like, having seen these items before,
0:23:20 > 0:23:23it looks like an industrial-style guillotine.
0:23:23 > 0:23:26Now, what these are used for is to actually slice the money,
0:23:26 > 0:23:28cut the money, after it's been made.
0:23:28 > 0:23:31The next heavy box DC Bell pulls from the lockup
0:23:31 > 0:23:35contains the final piece of this money-forging puzzle.
0:23:35 > 0:23:37The last phase of the process
0:23:37 > 0:23:41is to print the metallic details and holograms on the notes
0:23:41 > 0:23:45and this industrial toner-foiler is the ideal machine for the job.
0:23:45 > 0:23:50The officers have now found all the evidence they need.
0:23:50 > 0:23:54Taken together, this is all the kit, the paraphernalia you would use
0:23:54 > 0:23:57to produce and make counterfeit currency.
0:23:57 > 0:24:00And once it's been through here and once it's been cut by the guillotine
0:24:00 > 0:24:04it's then fresh and ready to be circulated in the public domain.
0:24:04 > 0:24:07The contents of the lock-up are seized as evidence
0:24:07 > 0:24:10and taken back to the police station.
0:24:10 > 0:24:14Even though the officers have not found a stash of counterfeit notes,
0:24:14 > 0:24:16the operation has still been a huge success.
0:24:18 > 0:24:21Later, officers manage to forensically link
0:24:21 > 0:24:22the printers they found
0:24:22 > 0:24:24to £160,000 worth of fake banknotes
0:24:24 > 0:24:29removed from circulation by the Bank of England.
0:24:29 > 0:24:33A memory stick found at Higgs' home was also found to contain
0:24:33 > 0:24:36the security features needed to replicate £20 and £50 notes.
0:24:36 > 0:24:40We've disrupted a highly organised and highly lucrative
0:24:40 > 0:24:42counterfeit-currency operation,
0:24:42 > 0:24:46and that will stop further distribution of currency
0:24:46 > 0:24:48by this particular group of individuals.
0:24:48 > 0:24:51This was one of the largest counterfeit-money operations
0:24:51 > 0:24:54ever discovered in the UK.
0:24:54 > 0:24:56Anthony Higgs was convicted
0:24:56 > 0:24:59of producing and distributing counterfeit currency.
0:24:59 > 0:25:02He's currently serving eight years in jail.
0:25:02 > 0:25:06Six other people were also convicted as a result of this investigation.
0:25:15 > 0:25:19In Essex, the police are looking into another way
0:25:19 > 0:25:22that the fakers are trying to get goods into the country.
0:25:22 > 0:25:25This time, they're smuggling alcohol.
0:25:25 > 0:25:30Customs have a list of lorries that they're interested in inspecting
0:25:30 > 0:25:33and as they pass through the Dartford Crossing,
0:25:33 > 0:25:35police motorcycles are picking them up
0:25:35 > 0:25:37and guiding them into the services.
0:25:40 > 0:25:42Today is Operation Mermaid,
0:25:42 > 0:25:46which is part of a national operation
0:25:46 > 0:25:50on targeting moving criminals, especially in heavy goods vehicles.
0:25:50 > 0:25:52We've got colleagues from Customs and Excise
0:25:52 > 0:25:55who will be checking for what we can term illegal loads.
0:25:55 > 0:25:57We are having an increasing problem
0:25:57 > 0:26:00with alcohol being brought across from the continent,
0:26:00 > 0:26:03that people are attempting to evade paying duty on.
0:26:05 > 0:26:10PC Alistair Cuthbertson and his team inspect each vehicle as it comes in,
0:26:10 > 0:26:13and the Customs officers look out for anything unusual.
0:26:15 > 0:26:18A suspicious alcohol-laden lorry is brought in and inspected -
0:26:18 > 0:26:21it's loaded with wine.
0:26:22 > 0:26:23Customs have taken the paperwork,
0:26:23 > 0:26:25they're going to make their enquiries,
0:26:25 > 0:26:28I'm going to check the driver's hours and the documents
0:26:28 > 0:26:30and we shall see where we go from there.
0:26:32 > 0:26:35The duty that needs to be paid on alcohol varies
0:26:35 > 0:26:38depending on the strength of the alcohol in question.
0:26:38 > 0:26:42On a load of this size, the duty would cost around £35,000.
0:26:44 > 0:26:46Customs have completed their enquiries
0:26:46 > 0:26:48on this imported load of wine
0:26:48 > 0:26:50and have found that counterfeit paperwork has been used.
0:26:52 > 0:26:54This lorry is actually a fake.
0:26:54 > 0:26:57The real lorry would have looked exactly like this one,
0:26:57 > 0:26:59would have had the same load,
0:26:59 > 0:27:03and would have passed through customs a few days before.
0:27:03 > 0:27:05This fake lorry was using the same paperwork as the real one,
0:27:05 > 0:27:08but while the real lorry had paid its duty,
0:27:08 > 0:27:12this one was trying to get away without paying its dues.
0:27:13 > 0:27:16The counterfeit paperwork means that it's void,
0:27:16 > 0:27:18it won't be allowed to travel,
0:27:18 > 0:27:20and both the load, the trailer and the vehicle
0:27:20 > 0:27:22will be seized and taken away to the pound.
0:27:24 > 0:27:26Customs believe that importers
0:27:26 > 0:27:30try to get away with sending through as many fake lorries as they can,
0:27:30 > 0:27:34all trying to get away with using the same counterfeit paperwork.
0:27:34 > 0:27:36And with this kind of fakery on the rise,
0:27:36 > 0:27:39this is exactly the sort of thing they've been looking out for.
0:27:39 > 0:27:44A lorry of this size could be worth up to £50,000.
0:27:44 > 0:27:47So with his lorry seized forever,
0:27:47 > 0:27:50this man has certainly paid the price for the fakery.
0:27:51 > 0:27:54As Customs officers proceed with seizing the goods,
0:27:54 > 0:27:55the owner of the lorry
0:27:55 > 0:27:58reluctantly removes his belongings from the cabin.
0:28:01 > 0:28:03The vehicle that was seized by HM Customs
0:28:03 > 0:28:06is a very big success as far as we're all concerned.
0:28:15 > 0:28:18That's all from Fake Britain today. Bye for now.
0:28:27 > 0:28:30Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd