A man has been sentenced to five years in jail for his part in running a North London counterfeit credit and debit card factory.
Aidin Jhaledhoust received the prison term for conspiracy to defraud, becoming the fifth person jailed in relation to the scam. Zahid Karwani and brothers Ahmed, Mahmoud and Mohammed Charmaga were sentenced last April.
The gang members were arrested after the Dedicated Cheque and Plastic Crime Unit (DCPCU) shutdown their high-tech counterfeit card factory in Brent, north-west London in November 2008.
Officers recovered 500 counterfeit cards, encoded with the details stolen from victims, as well as 1000 other compromised card numbers which were found on a laptop. Counterfeiting equipment was also seized, including a card embosser, colour printer and hot foil tipper.
Last April police estimated that the gang netted over £600,000, using the fake cards to buy designer clothing and expensive aftershave and withdraw large amounts of cash from ATMs in this country and abroad.
Detective Chief Inspector Paul Barnard, head, DCPCU, say: "By putting this card fraud gang behind bars the Dedicated Cheque and Plastic Crime Unit has prevented them from defrauding the banking industry and its customers of several million pounds."