In unprecedented times of a crisis none of us were prepared for, Gary Robinson and Tony Blake will discuss how over the last 12 months the Dedicated Card & Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU), a police unit funded by the finance industry, quickly adapted to new ways of working to target, identify and arrest those responsible for fraud. They will highlight collaborative working and provide real case examples before turning their attention to demonstrate some of the not so criminal masterminds experienced over the years.
Speaker Bios:
Gary Robinson has spent the last twenty years as a Police Officer serving with Essex Police and the City of London Police. For the last 2 years Gary has been the Head of Unit for the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU). Prior to this role he led the City of London’s Police Cyber Crime Unit having responsibility as the Senior Investigating Officer for Cyber Dependent Crime and also assisting in the development and implementation of Cyber Griffin which is an initiative that helps businesses and individuals in the Square Mile protect themselves from cyber-crime.
Whilst working for Essex Police Gary gained experience across a broad spectrum of Policing disciplines including serious violence and sexual offences, child sexual exploitation and Counter Terrorism.
Whilst working for the Eastern Counter Terrorism Intelligence Unit Gary was the regional central point of contact and co-ordinator between the six forces in the East of England regarding intelligence relating to individuals who were vulnerable to radicalisation. Whilst in this role he also gained credits towards a master’s degree with Kings College of London in the studies of the Issue of Radicalisation in Countering Terrorism.
Gary has received numerous Chief Constable Commendations and a Crown Court Judges Commendation for his work across Policing. These have been in the areas of Bravery, Professionalism, Tact, Perseverance and Planning. In addition to his current role as Head of DCPCU Gary is a Tactical Firearms Commander.
Tony Blake works for UK Finance, seconded to the DCPCU as Head of Stakeholder Relations. Prior to this appointment he worked on the DCPCU with UK Finance members to change their customers behaviour in respect of fraud and cyber enabled crime and to educate their colleagues around the methods used by the criminal gangs. In 2018 he won the Innovation Award at the Excellence in Policing Awards for a film he made with a ex bank staff member convicted of enabling £400k worth of fraud for an organised criminal gang. The staff member spoke about how he became involved and most importantly how his subsequent arrest and conviction to 3 years imprisonment ruined his life. He also represents both DCPCU and UK Finance as a spokesperson in the media discussing fraud related matters.
Tony is a retired metropolitan police officer having served for just over 30 years. He was a career detective, working in various roles including serious and organised crime, murder, witness protection & economic crime, ending his career as an operational Detective Sergeant on the DCPCU.
