A fraudster who helped to raid £74,000 from the life savings of a retired nuclear physicist whose computer was remotely accessed has been jailed for two-and-a-half years.
Klaudiusz Majewski, 49, was part of an organised crime group which targeted vulnerable people in a bid to scam them out of their money.
One of the victims was Leopold Reeves, a pensioner who received a phone call from a man posing as a National Crime Agency officer informing him that his computer was being used for money laundering.
He was tricked into letting the fraudsters log on to his computer and install software, and once in control of the device the fraudsters duped Mr Reeves into making transfers to accounts he believed had been set up in his name.
Majewski fled the UK after being charged in 2018, but was brought back to the UK earlier this year after being tracked down in Germany.
At Inner London crown court on Monday, he was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison for a series of offences relating to the fraud.
Mr Reeves was suffering from tongue cancer when he spoke to The Standard about the fraud in 2019, when he was 84.
He said the scammers “took away his pension” from a career working in physics, at Sizewell B and Dungeness A power stations.
“The man said they needed my help to identify the offenders”, he explained.
“Once I logged on to my computer, they installed software which took over the device. I never doubted them for a minute. I just accepted it because I grew up law-abiding and trusting the police.”
The scam involved Mr Reeves logging on to his online banking using the computer they had taken control of.
He was then instructed to make transfers at local branches to accounts he believed had been set up in his name. Mr Reeves was sent receipts and other documentation to print off and take to local bank branches to prove the accounts were his.
City of London Police said Mr Reeves saw three of the fraudsters - Avinash Kakumanu, Dinesh Alavala and Ranjit Nellikondi – brought to justice. Most of the stolen money was eventually returned to him, but he passed away before the fourth man, Majewski, was caught again.
“The money was my pension saved over my career. It’s been taken away. I’m not aggrieved, I just have to put up with it”, Mr Reeves said.
"When the real police were called, it was a great comfort because it ended all the lies I had to tell my bank. The officers were fantastic but I don’t think I will see all the money again.”
Kakumanu, of Newham, was sentenced to three years in prison and Alavala, also of Newham, was jailed for two-and-a-half years for conspiracy to defraud and money laundering. Nellikondi, of Rotherham, received a two-year suspended prison sentence for money laundering.
Majewski, of Wolsey Avenue, East Ham, pleaded guilty to possession of identity documents with intent and possession of articles for use in fraud.
Police said he provided the others with fraudulently opened bank accounts, while the call centre scam was operated from India.
“The victim in this case has unfortunately passed away, but we did not give up in our relentless pursuit of justice. Majewski will now answer for his crimes”, said Detective Inspector Michael O’Sullivan.
“Although this heinous act took place many years ago, we have not forgotten and will not forget victims of fraud.”
