Two local men charged with fraud offences.

Forty-one-year-old Derek Rodriguez, of Devil’s Gap, and 32-year-old Dyson Lima, have been charged with a number of fraud-related offences.

Derek Rodriguez and Dyson Lima have been charged jointly as follows:

 One count of Fraud by False Representation, under the Crimes Act 2011.

 One count of Using of Criminal Property, under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2015.

 One count of Transferring of Criminal Property, under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2015.

Derek Rodriguez has also been charged with an additional count of Possession of Criminal Property under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2015.

The charges follow an investigation conducted by detectives from the RGP's Economic Crime Unit into a series of alleged fraudulent refund transactions, involving the fraudulent receipt and attempted withdrawal of funds, which included a successfully processed refund totalling £35,000.

Derek Rodriguez was arrested on the 12th August this year, and Dyson Lima on the 3rd of September, with both charged at the conclusion of the RGP investigation.

Both are due to appear before the Magistrates’ Court this morning.