LONDON (Kyodo) A British man has been found guilty of plotting to defraud a Japanese bank in London of £229 million ($324 million), Britain's Press Association reported Wednesday.
Hugh Rodley was found guilty by a jury of conspiring to defraud the London office of Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation Europe Ltd. between Jan. 1, 2004, and Oct. 5, 2004, according to the report.
Detectives say if Rodley had been successful it would have been the biggest bank theft in Britain's history. Several high-profile Japanese companies were targeted in the brazen crime, which involved hacking into the bank's computer system and recording secret passwords.