(VOVworld) – British and Spanish police have jointly arrested more than 100 people in Europe and the United States in an international crackdown on suspicion of money laundering and fraud.

Worldwide crackdown: Officers from City of London Police joined Spanish counterparts from the Policia Nacional in a series of dramatic raids in Barcelona, Madrid, Marbella and London. (Photo: dailymail.co.uk)

This is the result of the two-year investigation codenamed Operation Rico that led to 84 arrests in Spain, 20 in Britain, four in Serbia and two in the United States. The investigation was made by London police and their counterpart in Spain.

Most of the arrested under the cover of office workers seduced potential investors to buy worthless, overpriced or even non-existent shares using high-pressure sales techniques.

The scheme closed what are believed to be 14 boiler rooms in Spain, two in Britain and one in Serbia with goods worth nearly 840,000 USD seized including fancy cars, clothes, watches and cash.