A pop star, a TV actress and top sportsmen are among hundreds of victims of an £80million Bernard Madoff-style scam, it emerged last night.
Detectives believe at least 600 investors were duped in one of the biggest Ponzi frauds uncovered in the UK.
Many lost huge sums and have been declared bankrupt. Others have lost their homes.
The Ferrari-driving fraudsters are said to have wooed clients at plush sports clubs and upmarket bars, targeting celebrities in a con that was so convincing that some of the victims still refuse to accept they have been ripped off.
Police were anxious to keep the names of the high-profile victims secret last night as some have yet to learn they have been duped.
Investigators have frozen the assets of Business Consulting International (BCI) and two other companies – John Anderson Consulting and Kenneth Peacock Consulting. BCI was based in a mews in Knightsbridge, West London.
City of London Police believe their suspects, who lived in rented properties in Surrey and London, spent some of their clients’ money on a series of luxury cars.
Last week officers seized an £800,000 stable of eight luxury cars, including a Lamborghini, two Ferraris and several Bentleys from a West Sussex dealership as part of the investigation.
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