FCA Secures Extra Jail Time For Money Launderer

The FCA has secured an additional 499-day prison sentence against convicted money launderer Richard Faithfull after he failed to fully satisfy a confiscation order linked to a £2.5 million laundering operation tied to overseas investment frauds.

Faithfull, now 36, was originally sentenced in 2021 to 5 years and 10 months in prison following an FCA prosecution. Authorities said he played a role in a transnational organised crime network that laundered proceeds from at least seven overseas investment fraud schemes. The underlying frauds were connected to boiler room activity that caused significant consumer harm.

The confiscation proceedings were designed to recover criminal proceeds and return funds to victims. The court determined that Faithfull had available assets totalling £529,961, but he has repaid only £349,214.37 to date. As a result of the shortfall, the court activated a further custodial sentence on 8 May 2026 during a hearing at City of London Magistrates’ Court.

The FCA highlighted that the additional prison term does not remove Faithfull’s financial obligations. He remains liable for the outstanding balance even after serving the default sentence, with the unpaid amount continuing to accrue interest at a daily rate of £39.62. Recovered funds will be directed towards compensating victims of the frauds.

Steve Smart, executive director of enforcement and market oversight at the FCA, said the case demonstrated the regulator’s determination to pursue financial criminals beyond their original convictions. He stated that Faithfull’s actions enabled millions of pounds to be stolen from innocent victims and that the further prison sentence reflected the seriousness of his failure to repay the money owed.

The case also reinforces the FCA’s broader enforcement agenda under its current 5-year strategy, which places financial crime and consumer protection at the centre of its supervisory and enforcement priorities.

Read the press release here.