Book Review: Fraud
| Author | Mark Button |
| DOI | 10.1350/ijps.2007.9.3.301 |
| Published date | 01 September 2007 |
| Date | 01 September 2007 |
| Subject Matter | Book Review |
Book review
Fraud
by Alan Doig
(Willan Publishing, 2006; ISBN: 1-84392-172-3; £19.50 (pbk); ISBN: 978-1-84392-173-8;
£45.00 (hardback))
Anyone writing a book on the British
criminal justice system in the current fren-
zied environment of reform, legislation,
reviews, reorganisations etc, does so by the
‘seat of their pants’ with their fingers
crossed. Fraud, by contrast, has been largely
neglected by legislators and policy-makers
despite it being a £billion problem, and the
recent Fraud Review suggesting it ‘may be
the second largest cause of harm from
organised crime after Class A drugs traffick-
ing and nearly twice as harmful as the harm
done by people smuggling and people traf-
ficking combined’ (Fraud Review Team,
2006, p. 29).
To write a book on fraud, therefore, one
would have been much more confident that
the political and legal landscape were less
likely to change on the eve of publication.
Unfortunately for Doig his book was pub-
lished at around the same time as the Fraud
Review and just before the implementation
of the Fraud Act 2006. The former sets out
62 recommendations that, if implemented
(and it would seem most of them will be),
will significantly change the fraud landscape
and the latter radically changes the scope for
prosecuting fraud offences.
Timing aside, Fraud represents the first
academic introductory text on this subject
and is a very informative, readable and well-
researched book that provides dozens of
fascinating examples. Doig draws upon his
considerable knowledge of fraud and schol-
arship of this subject to compile this work.
It can also be seen as a watershed publica-
tion, breaking fraud from the chains of
white-collar crime and placing it as a
deserving subject in its own right within
criminology.
The book begins with an exploration of
the academic context of fraud before exam-
ining what fraud is. The costs, profile of
fraudsters and why they commit fraud are
then explored. The investigation and pro-
secution of fraud are described in the
public, private and ‘in-house’ sectors. A
chapter is also offered on the investigative
frameworks, which is largely focused upon
the legal structures. The book ends with a
chapter on punishment and Doig’s vision of
the future of fraud.
It is also worth noting the many case
studies used in the book to illustrate the
debates and issues explored. They range
from particular cases of fraud, such as the
NHS Chief Executive who had lied about
his CV, to a brief history of a long and
complex fraud trial, examining whether
fraud trials are too complex. These case
studies really add to the quality of the book
and its potential use as a course text.
As someone who works for an academic
institution that provides fraud courses, I
find that the book satisfies nearly all my
needs of a text. If a second edition is in the
pipeline to cover the reforms outlined
above, a chapter that sets out the politics of
fraud and introduces the reader to the key
International Journal of Police Science & Management Volume 9 Number 3
International Journal of Police
Science and Management,
Vol. 9 No. 3, 2007, pp. 301–302.
© Vathek Publishing,
1461–3557
Page 301
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