Category: Middle East

Regulatory Watch News

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  FCA secures money back for victims of crypto fraud

  Financial Conduct Authority

  September 28, 2026

  Victims of a £1.5m crypto investment fraud will recover lost funds after the FCA obtained confiscation orders against Raymondip Bedi and Patrick Mavanga.

  At a hearing at Southwark Crown Court on 28 September 2026, Raymondip Bedi was ordered to pay £603,404.28 and Patrick Mavanga £247,997.99. Between February 2017 and June 2019, Bedi and Mavanga operated a fraudulent investment scheme, cold-calling consumers and persuading them to invest in fake cryptoasset opportunities through companies including CCX Capital and Astaria Group LLP. At least 65 investors were defrauded and lost £1,541,799. The FCA has identified and contacted victims of the fraud and will ensure that funds recovered through the confiscation process are returned to victims.

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  Arrests and searches in narcotics investigation

  Fiscal Information and Investigation Service - FIOD

  September 28, 2026

  On Wednesday, September 23, 2026, the FIOD and police carried out multiple arrests and searches in a criminal investigation into drug trafficking and money laundering. The individuals involved are men aged 42 and 22 residing in Eindhoven. Seven homes and three business premises in Eindhoven, the municipality of Land van Cuijk, and Germany were searched, and physical and digital records were seized. A third man was also arrested during the operation. This 22-year-old Eindhoven resident was wanted by the police and was arrested to serve an outstanding sentence.

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  Investigation into illegal tobacco trafficking ring results in four arrests

  The Royal Canadian Mounted Police

  September 25, 2026

  The RCMP Federal Policing Northwest Region’s Integrated Money Laundering Investigative Team (IMLIT) in Alberta charged four individuals with various fraud, money laundering, and contraband-related offences. Following a complex investigation, IMLIT identified a Calgary-based criminal network centered around a multimillion-dollar contraband tobacco trafficking operation. A total of seven search warrants were executed across the Calgary and Airdrie areas, resulting in the seizure of: More than $3 million in contraband tobacco; Over 88 kg of unstamped illicit cannabis and cannabis byproducts; Nearly 10 kg of illicit drugs, including Psilocybin, MDMA, DMT, and LSD; Nearly $170,000 cash; and, More than $300,000 worth of precious metals, luxury goods, and a high-value vehicle.