Suspected serial fraudster police custody

A MAN who has been wanted by police since December last year in connection with almost 90 cases of theft and forgery has been arrested and remanded in custody.

The 41-year-old is under investigation for 21 counts of stealing cheques that were sent by post, one count of stealing a driving licence, 24 counts of forging cheques, 16 counts of obtaining money under false pretences, two counts of attempting to obtain money under false pretences and ten counts identity fraud.

The thefts date back to 2005 with the suspect believed to have cashed around £5,000 in stolen cheques.

During the suspect’s remand hearing yesterday, CID Sergeant Natassa Anastasiadou told Judge Angelos David that “they had received countless complaints from people in Strovolos who had had cheques, sent to them by post”.

The investigator added that there were reasonable suspicions that the suspect had stolen his first cousin’s driving licence and used his relative’s identity to cash the cheques he was stealing from people’s post boxes.

It was during the suspect’s attempt to cash a cheque using his cousin’s name that a bank clerk finally got suspicious.

Despite trying to delay the cashing of his cheque to give time for the police to arrive, the suspect reportedly felt something was wrong and left the bank.

When the suspect’s first cousin was called to the police station, investigators realised he was not the culprit, he also told he had lost his licence in the past.

The 41-year-old eventually came under suspicion and evaded arrest until Monday when he was finally apprehended.

Upon his arrest, the suspect reportedly told officers, “OK, it’s me and I’ll confess to you other things that I stole as well”.

Judge David yesterday remanded the suspect in police custody for eight days.
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