https://www.ft.com/content/7f0dd573-39bc-46ff-a82f-81a38968ce68

A former anti-money laundering expert who chaired a UK payment services industry group has himself been convicted of laundering the proceeds of an investment scam worth £850,000.

Dominic James Edward Thorncroft of Orpington, Kent was convicted on Wednesday by a jury at Southwark Crown Court of one count of money laundering, one count of breaching money laundering regulations and four counts of retaining a wrongful credit. He will be sentenced in July.

The 56-year-old spent 14 years as the chair of the Association of UK Payment Institutions, representing the interests of the money remittance sector.

Thorncroft held himself out as a money laundering expert and the industry group worked with MPs and financial regulators providing anti-money laundering advice and training.

Cracking down on money laundering has become a top priority for regulators. The Financial Conduct Authority, HMRC and National Crime Agency are currently struggling to battle a tide of dirty money flowing through the UK.

A national risk assessment of money laundering and terrorist financing published by the government earlier in 2021 estimated that “hundreds of billions of pounds” were laundered in the UK each year.

Thorncroft’s prosecution was brought after a 2016 Metropolitan police investigation linked him to an investment fraud that took place in 2014.

Prosecutors alleged that Thorncroft had allowed his Money Service Bureau business to be used by fraudsters to transfer criminal proceeds of an investment fraud to Hong Kong and China, according to a statement issued on Wednesday by the Crown Prosecution Service, which brought the case.

Prosecutors alleged that Thorncroft must have known or suspected that the money passing through his business’s bank accounts was criminal property and that despite his expertise of money laundering, Thorncroft failed to alert the authorities.

Stephane Pendered, prosecutor for the specialist fraud division of the Crown Prosecution Service, said that Thorncroft did not commit the fraud himself.

“However his actions have allowed £850,000 defrauded from 60 individuals to be dispersed across the world. Thorncroft promoted himself as an anti-money laundering expert but failed to live up to the standards he set for others,” she said in a statement, adding he chose to ignore what was happening at his business.

Detective Sergeant Mark Hoddinott from the central specialist crime command at the Metropolitan Police said that Thorncroft had failed to make disclosures to the authorities, despite his knowledge of anti-money laundering regulations.

“If Thorncroft had complied with his own company policies, then he would not have been prosecuted. Instead, he paid absolutely no regard to his overriding duty to anti-money regulations. Consequently, many individuals suffered great financial loss and considerable personal trauma,” said Hoddinott.