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New specialist team for London set to put loan sharks behind bars - Illegal Money Lending (IML) team for London established Autumn 2007 to track down and prosecute illegal money lenders (loan sharks) in the capital
- The IML team is part of LoTSA (London Trading Standards Authorities), the umbrella body which co-ordinates London wide Trading Standards campaigns.
- The IML team will target and prosecute loan sharks identified by intelligence as causing the greatest damage to victims and their communities.
- The IML team consists of a manager, investigators, a police officer, a financial inclusion officer, a victim support officer and other project staff.
- The team will support all London borough Trading Standard’s departments through specialist investigations and technical support but the team’s initial efforts will be focused on Tower Hamlets, Newham and Hackney.
- Victims of loan sharks will be helped by a specially employed Financial Inclusion Officer and Victim Support Officer, based at Toynbee Hall, East London. Victims will also be helped by Capitalise, London’s debt advice partnership which can help people manage existing debts. Capitalise has 59 debt adviser s working in partner organisations across London.
- The launch of the public media campaign calling on victims to report illegal money lenders took place on Wednesday January 23rd at Toynbee Hall, Tower Hamlets.
- Publicity to encourage members of the public to come forward with information includes advertisements inside buses, full page adverts in local authority newspapers and magazines and a radio advertisement campaign on Magic 105.4FM.
- Anyone who has information about a loan shark should call 020 7364 6886, text ‘Shark Bait’ (+ your message) and send to 60003, or email:
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