Victims were defrauded into investing into Scotch whisky casks that were overpriced, did not exist, or were sold multiple times to separate investors.
According to the BBC report, the police are currently investigating three cask investment companies over fraud allegations valued into the millions of pounds.
In July 2024, the City of London Police launched an investigation into Cask Whisky Ltd, one of the companies named in the report.
At the time, detective inspector Stephen Weller of the Serious Organised Crime Team said:
“Investment fraud is an incredibly callous form of criminality, that can leave victims in financial ruin. Regarding Cask Whisky Ltd, we are investigating an allegation of fraud and seeking to establish if any criminality has taken place.
“If you have made any investments with Cask Whisky Ltd, or have been contacted by Cask Whisky Ltd, we would ask you to submit information to help us build a bigger picture and help our ongoing enquiries.”
The report revealed that Cask Whisky Ltd is operated by a disqualified director and convicted fraudster Craig Brooks who ran the company under the pseudonym Craig Arch.
Brooks was found to be in charge of another investment company, Cask Spirits Global Ltd, under the false name Craig Hutchins.
A third company, Whisky Scotland, has come under allegations of selling casks at inflated prices or that did not exist.
Last year, Drinks International spoke with whisky writer and Keeper of the Quaich Felipe Schrieberg, who had launched Protect Your Cask, an online educational platform that seeks to prevent instances of cask fraud.
