CONMEN ‘blinded by greed’ who laundered cash scammed from elderly victims walked free after their prison sentences were slashed on appeal.

Muhamed Talukdar and Syam Hussain were each jailed for eight months by judge Nicolas Cartwright at Worcester Crown in June. The judge described the men as 'blinded by greed' while police branded the con, committed against people in their 80s, 'ruthless'. The 'deterrent' sentences imposed by judge Cartwright were welcomed by police but their barristers took the case to the Court of Appeal in London. Their sentences were both varied to a one year community order with an unpaid work requirement of 50 hours, meaning 22-year-old Talukdar and 24-year-old Hussain walked free from prison after the hearing on July 30.

Talukdar contacted the Worcester News with a copy of a letter from the Court of Appeal criminal division confirming that the court has ‘allowed the appeal and quashed the sentence imposed in the court below’. Further checks with the court confirmed this was the case for both Talukdar and Hussain.

Talukdar of Stepney Way, London, and Hussain of Scarle Road, Wembley, were unanimously convicted by a jury of entering into and becoming concerned with the acquisition, retention, use or control of criminal property.

The trial followed a large-scale Cumbria Police and West Mercia Police investigation into fraud offences between April and June 2016 across several counties, and saw eight defendants convicted earlier this year. Five of those jailed received sentences for more than 20 years.

Victims were called on their landlines by individuals posing as police officers investigating fraud at a local banking branch and asked to hand over significant amounts of money. Hussain and Talukdar’s roles in the £200,000 fraud saw them facilitate the laundering of money stolen from elderly victims in Worcestershire, including Evesham. Talukdar provided his bank account details and access to his online banking to other members of the gang, accepting cash in return for handing over control of his account. Meanwhile Hussain was complicit in providing bank account details to other members of the gang which were given to elderly victims under the guise of being a ‘safe police account’. More than 50 victims were targeted. Of those 15 were convinced to hand over money.