Stafford man jailed after making £900,000 selling 'flawless' counterfeit professional and education certificates around the world
A Stafford man has been jailed after selling fake qualifications online for £1,000 each.
David Grundy, of Coton Avenue, Stafford, previously pleaded guilty to fraudulent trading after a National Trading Standards eCrime Team investigation uncovered the online service he was running with his brother for over a decade.
The 61-year-old made thousands of fake education and professional certificates, which a were advertised as 'flawless' and 'high quality', designed to look like genuine qualifications from universities and awarding bodies from around the world.
Customers from across the UK and around the world would buy the counterfeit qualifications - with some going for £1,000 each - to secure skilled jobs they were not qualified for posing a risk to employers and the public, York Crown Court was told.
In 2021, a Trading Standards investigation began. In December that year, officers executed a warrant at Grundy’s home. They seized equipment used to make counterfeit certificates, including embossing stamps, holograms, high-grade paper and a laser engraver.
A handwritten list with nearly 300 customer names was also found, giving a snapshot of the global customer base.
From thousands of customers worldwide, Trading Standards officers identified at least 70 people in the UK who had obtained fake certificates.
Some were used to secure places on higher education courses, while others helped people get jobs in fields such as biomedical science, optometry, engineering, occupational health and safety, electrical installation, teaching, accountancy and law.
After the activity was uncovered, the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ), which represents the UK’s main awarding bodies, instructed solicitors to warn Grundy and demand that he stop producing the fake certificates.
Grundy ignored the warning and continued to produce and sell the forgeries. He was sentenced to three years' in prison at York Crown Court on March 13.
Lord Michael Bichard, Chairman of National Trading Standards, said: “This operation offered a dangerous shortcut into highly skilled work. When individuals can pass fake certificates off as genuine, it puts the public at risk.
“It also allows individuals to defraud honest businesses and public sector organisations, while wasting significant time and resources for awarding bodies working to protect the integrity of the qualifications that thousands of people study hard to achieve.
“Anyone who believes they may have encountered a similar scam should contact the Citizens Advice consumer service on 0808 223 1133.”
A JCQ spokesperson said: “JCQ welcomes today’s sentencing and was pleased to support this prosecution. Students work hard to achieve their qualifications, and teachers work hard to support them. Fake certificates undermine that effort and today’s outcome reflects how serious and unacceptable this activity is.”
