According to a news article by Bob Dow in Scotland's Daily Record, nine people have been charged by police over an alleged £10m property scam.
Fraud squad detectives have spent more than two years investigating the financial affairs of a group of business people in Aberdeen. The long-running probe focused on lawyers, surveyors and estate agents. A specially-created Grampian Police team looked into a series of loans and mortgages taken out on a large number of properties in the Aberdeen area. Part of their inquiry focused on claims that the values of certain properties were allegedly artificially inflated.
A Grampian Police spokesman said yesterday: "We can confirm that following lengthy investigations eight men and a woman have been reported in connection with a fraudulent scheme. A report has been forwarded to the Crown Office for their consideration."
A specialist unit at the Crown Office, which deals with major financial investigations, is now studying the police report. Last night, a Crown Office spokeswoman said: "We have only received this report recently and it is still in the early stages of consideration."
Oil-rich Aberdeen has had a booming property market for years, with the North Sea wealth fuelling a huge demand for homes in the area. The Granite City has consistently been one of the UK's top property hot spots with flats and houses selling for anything up to 40 per cent over valuation estimates.
