Pc arrested in education fund fraud

A policeman has been arrested in connection with an attempt to defraud £90,000 from an education fund for poor children.

Officers from Metropolitan Police's Anti-Corruption Command, raided seven business and residential addresses across London on Wednesday arresting a total of six people.

These included a Pc serving in Newham, east London, a member of staff from Newham Borough Council and an employee of The Learning Trust in Hackney.

The arrests follow attempts to divert money from a fund intended to benefit the education of children from deprived backgrounds in the east London borough, that the trust looks after.

Three men and two women were arrested on allegations of deception, misconduct in a public office and conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.

One of the men arrested in connection to this matter is a police officer and this action shows that where we suspect officers may have been involved in criminal behaviour we will not hesitate to act Detective Chief Superintendent Shaun Sawyer

Another man was held on immigration offences.

A police spokesman said that in addition to the suspected offences of deception a number of other possible criminal offences involving the serving police officer have also been discovered during the investigation.

Detective Chief Superintendent Shaun Sawyer of the Met's Anti-Corruption Command said: "The arrests this morning follow several months of work investigating what would appear to be an attempt to divert funds from some of the most vulnerable in our community.

"One of the men arrested in connection to this matter is a police officer and this action shows that where we suspect officers may have been involved in criminal behaviour we will not hesitate to act."

All those arrested were taken to an east London police station for questioning.