Scotland's Fraud Bill Soars to Record £50M

FRAUD cost Scotland a record £50million last year, it's been revealed.

The huge sum was lost through various scams and is almost treble the amount recorded in 2005.

It's also the highest in the 20 years accountants KPMG have been analysing the problem. They blame organised crime.

But there was also the case of Edinburgh bank chief Donald McKenzie, 45, who was jailed last year for embezzling £21million from the Royal Bank of Scotland.

In another case, insurance broker John Walker, 57, sold £10million-worth of bogus policies.

However, KPMG's Ken Milliken insisted the frauds carried out by criminal gangs were most worrying.

He said: "They clearly have been stepping up their efforts with ID theft, card scams, bank insider frauds, money-laundering and cigarette and VAT frauds all represented within our figures."

Milliken said company bosses in the UK committed almost £350million-worth of fraud in 2005.

He claimed that produced "a picture of a country where fraud is becoming worryingly deep-rooted".

Milliken added: "But you can't legislate against human nature, which is why fraud will always be around."

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/tm_headline=scotland-s-fraud-bill-soars-to-record--pound-50m-&method=full&objectid=18544862&siteid=66633-name_page.html