Sunderland man wanted in connection with fraud investigation arrested thanks to public appeal

Last week, officers asked for assistance in their efforts to locate a man who was evading police and was wanted as part of an ongoing investigation into a fraud offence.

The 31-year-old was the subject of extensive enquiries with various addresses across Wearside searched in a bid to locate him.

After detectives appealed directly to the community for information, a number of people came forward to assist – passing on intelligence that helped pinpoint the suspect’s movements.

That resulted in a search being carried out at an address in the Hendon area on Friday morning (June 11) where the man was located and placed under arrest.

He has since been charged with two counts of fraud by false representation and one count of theft and will appear in court later this week.

Detective Sergeant Chris Raper-Smith has thanked the public’s amazing response.

Adding: “A number of people got in touch with us to offer information about his whereabouts, and that allowed us to build up a clear picture as to his movements and identify an address where he was believed to be residing.

“He will now appear before the courts to answer three charges – and that outcome was only possible because of the public’s response.

“We will continue to do all we can to put suspects before the courts, but as ever, the public are our eyes and ears across our communities.

“We really appreciate your ongoing support and this was an excellent example of police and the public working together to ensure a suspect is brought before the court to answer a number of offences.”

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