Five people connected to an online agency suspected of scamming thousands of people in a ticket fraud relating to the Beijing Olympics have been arrested by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO).

Four men and one woman connected to Xclusive Tickets were detained following a series of raids involving officers from the SFO and Metropolitan Police at four London properties yesterday, the watchdog said.

The five, aged between 41 and 54, were released on unconditional bail after being interviewed.

According to the SFO, Xclusive, which was placed into liquidation in August, and related companies took payment for over 4,000 tickets that were never delivered.

The bulk were sold to fans hoping to visit the Beijing Olympics, but victims also included fans who bought tickets for the Reading and Leeds music festivals in the UK.

Richard Alderman, SFO director, urged anyone who suspects they may have been defrauded by Xclusive to visit the SFO website to provide details that may help in the investigation.

The SFO began its probe following a referral from the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR).

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