Police are hunting a woman who placed an order for £140,000 worth of euros in a Chelmsford travel agent using a false name.
The woman walked into Thomas Cook in the High Street in early September and placed an order for the euros by electronic transfer.
She was told this could only be done providing she had enough cleared funds in sterling.
A fax was then sent by the woman to a private bank in Romford, purporting to be an account holder and asking for funds to be released.
The bank carried out their usual security checks and found something fraudulent was taking place.
The genuine account holder, who lives in West London, contacted police and they are now liaising with Thomas Cook in a bid to trace the woman.
A spokesman for Essex Police said: "We have very good, clear images of the woman from CCTV when she was in the Chelmsford branch of Thomas Cook.
"The suspect is described as dark-skinned and of oriental appearance.Anyone with any information or who can identify the woman is asked to contact detectives at Chelmsford police station on 01245 491212.
Published Thursday, January 9, 2003
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