A scammer has appeared in court after helping to con a house buyer out of more than £70,000.

The victim was buying a property when she received an email from somebody pretending to be from the office of her conveyancing solicitor.

The message said she needed to transfer the funds to a bank account which had different details from the one she had previously received.

She questioned the change but was told the firm had two different accounts so contacted her bank and authorised the transfer of £70,500, on April 15, 2021.

It was not until afterwards the victim discovered it was a fraud so called the police.

Detectives from Kent Police’s Economic Crime Unit investigated and found the money had been moved into a business account controlled by Kimberley Abdul.

Within a couple of days, the funds had been moved to another of Abdul’s accounts and she had made purchases totalling more than £900 with some of the cash.

Abdul, of Darnley Road, Gravesend, was arrested on July 26, 2021, and charged with concealing, transferring or removing criminal property by means of transfers and purchases.

The 36-year-old appeared at Woolwich Crown Court last Monday (September 23) and was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment, suspended for 18 months.

She is also required to complete 20 days of rehabilitation activity and 100 hours of unpaid work.

Detective Constable Lee Preston said: “We have seen this type of case in the past where criminal gangs gain knowledge of an impending house purchase and then email victims to persuade them to send the money directly into an account controlled by a third party.

“That account holder is aware it is a scam and is allowed to keep some of the funds before moving the rest of the money to those who organised the fraud.

'She should be thoroughly ashamed of her actions…'

“These crimes can involve substantial amounts of money and the loss of the cash is devastating to the victim.

“While Abdul played a relatively minor part, her role was crucial in ensuring the gang members could remain anonymous. She should be thoroughly ashamed of her actions.

“In this case, the victim was able to recover her loss in full from her bank, but the incident should be a reminder to anyone involved in large money transfers to take care.

“If you receive an email or phone call asking you to send cash to a different account from the one you expected, end the interaction and phone the relevant organisation on a trusted phone number to check.”