Oxford man prosecuted for fraud
On 23 February Karvan Nawaz was prosecuted at Oxford Magistrates' Court for submitting a fraudulent document to the Security Industry Authority (SIA).
Nawaz was prosecuted for fraud by false representation under section 2 of the Fraud Act 2006 and sentenced to a 12-month community order and ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work. He was also ordered to pay a total of £314 including £114 representing a community order surcharge and £200 in court costs.
He had earlier entered a guilty plea at his first appearance in the court on 26 January 2024 and the case had been adjourned for a pre-sentence report to be compiled.
The case was brought forward by the SIA after Nawaz submitted a fraudulent document to the SIA for his licence application. As part of the application process, he was required to provide supporting documentation including references.
On 25 March 2022 he submitted a character reference letter purporting to be from a local postmaster who knew him personally. The SIA checked the validity of the reference letter and found it to be a fraudulent document. Nawaz was contacted by the SIA, but he failed to engage with the investigation or be interviewed by SIA investigators.
Nicola Bolton, one of the SIA’s criminal investigations managers said:
The primary purpose of the SIA licensing regime is to protect the public. A person must be fit and proper in order to hold an SIA licence. This is because the people who hold SIA licences are in positions of responsibility. They are entrusted to protect people, property, and premises. A commitment to certain standards of behaviour is fundamental to what it means to be fit and proper, and to being part of a profession.
By submitting a fraudulent document to the SIA, Karvan Nawaz proved he is not fit to hold a licence to carry out the important task of public safety. Submitting a fraudulent document is a serious offence and Nawaz’s sentence is a reminder that actions that can undermine public trust and cause a threat to public safety will be exposed and met with appropriate repercussions and penalties.
Press office
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Notes to editors
By law, security operatives working under contract must hold and display a valid SIA licence. Read about SIA enforcement and penalties.
The offence relating to the Fraud Act 2006 that is mentioned above is:
- Section 2 – fraud by false representation
Further information
The Security Industry Authority is the regulator of the UK’s private security industry. Our purpose is to protect the public through effective regulation of the private security industry and working with partners to raise standards across the sector. We are responsible for licensing people who do certain jobs in the private security industry and for approving private security companies who wish to be part of the voluntary ‘Approved Contractor Scheme’. We are marking 20 years since we were set up in 2003 and issued the first SIA licences in April 2004.
The SIA is an executive non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Home Office. For more information, visit: www.gov.uk/sia.
You can also find us on LinkedIn @Security Industry Authority, Facebook @theSIAUK, YouTube @TheSIAUK and X (formerly known as Twitter) @SIAuk.