Five people from the Midlands have been arrested by HMRC on suspicion of being involved in gift aid fraud estimated at £450,000.

Last week, a man aged 25 and a woman aged 22, were arrested by HMRC in Birmingham. Officers also arrested a female, 33, in Leicester.

Yesterday two men, both 26, were arrested at a Birmingham police station.

Adrian Farley, assistant director, criminal investigation, HMRC, said: “These people have been arrested on suspicion of making fraudulent gift aid claims and money laundering."

Officers removed computers and business records for further analysis. All five people have been released on bail until January 2014.