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Three jailed for tourist scams
LONDON | Tue Sep 28, 2010 12:46pm EDT
LONDON (Reuters) - Three people have been jailed for carrying out a scam to steal from more than 100 Japanese tourists in central London, police said on Tuesday. The gang targeted tourists at attractions such as the British Museum and the Oxford Street shopping area.
One, a woman, would pose as a tourist and ask a genuine visitor for directions or to take a photo for her. Other gang members would then approach and pretend to be police officers and demand details of the tourists' identity and credit cards.
The woman would comply and encourage the genuine tourists to do so as well. The group would then take the cards and withdraw cash or make expensive purchases. Detectives said the group was responsible for more than 70 offences while the Japanese Embassy said it had received more than 100 reports of such thefts or attempted thefts carried out against Japanese nationals.
At Blackfriars Crown Court, Carmen Banyai, 27, was jailed for 18 months, Stefan Balint, 31, for two years and Cosmin Negrea, 23, for 15 months after they pleaded guilty to conspiracy to steal. "Since targeting this criminal network, offences of this kind have dramatically decreased in the area and I hope this will reassure tourists visiting London," said Detective Constable David Ross.
(Reporting by Michael Holden; Editing by Steve Addison)
