Fraud

TERROR FUND 

British taxpayers’ money helped fund al-Qaeda and Osama bin Laden after £8bn stolen in HMRC fraud

Over two decades the gang, who operated in London, Buckinghamshire, Birmingham, Northwest England and Scotland, bagged around £8billion of the public's money, an investigation by The Sunday Times revealed.

Part of the colossal sum also came from mortgage and credit card fraud that targeted banks and individuals, the newspaper reports.

The fraudsters allegedly sent 1 per cent of the netted cash - worth £80million - to al-Qaeda in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

It is understood the cash was used by the terror group to fund training camps, extremist educational programmes and other terrorist activities.

Top secret intelligence documents held by MI5 are said to show that some of the money reached Osama bin Laden's compound in Pakistan before he was killed by US special forces in 2011.