The Serious Fraud Office has secured a £163,350 increase in the confiscated amount awarded against boiler room fraudster David Vidgeon, bringing the total confiscation amount to £269,899 over ten years after he was convicted.

Mr Vidgeon and co-conspirator Rahul Patel were found guilty of running a high-pressure share-pushing scheme from Spain to defraud around 1,250 UK-based investors out of over £7m.

The fraudsters sold low-value shares to private investors from boiler rooms in Spain, misrepresenting their value.

After selling the shares, Mr Vidgeon and Mr Patel siphoned off around 80% of the investment amount, leaving the investors with shares worth a fraction of their original investment.

The men were convicted of conspiracy to defraud in July 2010 and each was sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment.

The increase in the confiscation order comes after investigations by the SFO revealed that the realisable assets of Mr Vidgeon were higher than previously thought.

The confiscated funds will be used to compensate his victims, and a restraint order against him will remain in place until the balance has been paid.

Emma Luxton, head of the proceeds of crime and international assistance division, said: “We refuse to allow fraudsters to rest easy on the money of their victims and will continue to investigate until we are sure we have recovered all realisable assets.

“This increased confiscation order illustrates the determination of our Proceeds of Crime team to claw back criminal gains, no matter how many years have passed since their crimes.”

Boiler-room scams are on the rise again following the effects of the Coronavirus pandemic. The number of consumers getting in touch with the FCA directly with concerns about a possible scam increased by 23% in the first ten months of 2020 compared with the whole of 2019. The vast majority of these enquiries related to boiler-room scams, in which fraudsters attempt to sell worthless or non-existent investments.