Four arrested over suspected fraud in allocation of homes by Barking & Dagenham Council-owned firm

Four people in Dagenham and Essex have now been arrested on suspicion of housing fraud relating to the allocation of properties by a council-owned housing company.

City of London police last Thursday executed five warrants on residential addresses in the area and arrested two people. A statement released by Barking and Dagenham Council on Tuesday revealed that a further two people had been arrested. Housing Today understands nobody has yet been charged with an offence.

According to the council, it contacted police after a period of intelligence gathering by its counter-fraud team. A joint investigation with the City of London police called Operation Chandrila was subsequently launched.

The City of London police said evidence exists that between 1 November 2020 and 31 December 2024 ”several hundred LBBD properties were fraudulently allocated to members of the local community by LBBD corrupt housing officers for personal financial gain”.

It said: ”Prospective tenants answered social media adverts and were provided contacts as to how they could obtain affordable housing within the local Barking and Dagenham areas. As part of this process, prospective tenants paid fraudsters ‘finders fees’ and inflated rents. Some rents were paid in part to LBBD and some were not.”

The council said the suspected fraud does not relate to the allocation of council housing or the council’s housing allocations department, but solely to the allocation of properties owned by BD Reside, a council-owned company providing a range of shared ownership and discounted rental properties.

Set up in 2011, BD Reside has plans to build around 1,500 homes in the next two years in partnership with Be First.

Leader of the council,  Dominic Twomey, said: “The fact we have openly publicised this matter as much as we can, and contacted the City of London Police for guidance and support, shows our commitment to being open and transparent when serious concerns are found. We want this investigation to send a clear message that we simply won’t tolerate illegal activity.  

“Some of the comments I’ve seen from the public are calling for those involved to be named, which we obviously can’t do while the investigation is live. I’m hopeful that we’ll get the right result and will be able to talk more about the details once the case has concluded.

“We’re very grateful to the City of London Police for their strong partnership with the council and BD Reside throughout this process. As the investigation continues, I’d urge anyone who might have even the smallest piece of information to come forward – it could make all the difference.”