Fraud Investigation
Service

Our teams share their experiences

Megan – A day in the life of an Anti-Corruption Criminal Investigator.

My name is Megan, and I’m an Investigation Officer in HMRC’s Fraud Investigation Service (FIS) working specifically within the Anti-Corruption Internal Investigations team. This team is responsible for criminally investigating matters where HMRC employees, and their external counterparts, are suspected of being involved in criminal offences against HMRC functions.

I joined the team back in June 2024 having previously worked in the Police for 7 years, with the last 4 years as a Detective. I was motivated to join by the opportunity to continue doing criminal investigations, but in a different and sensitive area of law enforcement.

I feel like you can look at the job title and see ‘fraud’ and ‘internal investigations’ and you could assume it’s a dull role. I have heard references to us being the ‘expenses police’, which I can assure you is not the case. This role looks at criminal offences that can ultimately end up being prosecuted by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and lead to lengthy trials at Crown Court. The consequences of these crimes can often result in prison sentences and civil financial orders.

There aren’t many differences to the work that I did as a Detective, as I’m still conducting criminal investigations, but for different offences that sit within the remit of HMRC as a law enforcement agency. What I love about working within this team is the dynamic and varied nature of the work. I’m not someone who could be satisfied in a career sitting at an office desk staring at a screen 5 days a week, 8hrs a day! Some days are spent at my desk analysing data, making applications for orders or warrants, or requesting information from third parties; or I could be halfway across the country obtaining witness statements. Other days I could be carrying out authorised investigatory activities under RIPA, or deployed on live operations to arrest a suspect, interviewing in custody, searching an address, or giving evidence in court.

Whilst the role is of a dynamic nature and includes live operational demands, in my experience thus far, this isn’t necessarily every week and sometimes isn’t even every month, but there have been occasions where for a few weeks I had one day a week in a different city on various enquiries. When I first joined and was asking about the work demands I was told ‘it comes in peaks and troughs’; I would agree with that, and I think it’s a good balance. The team covers the entire of the UK including Northern Ireland and I personally have enjoyed visiting new cities and places.

This role includes hybrid working, allowing me to work from home when I am not required in the office. The guideline is 60% of the month in the office so generally it’s 3 days in and 2 days working from home. The role also includes flexible working hours with various flexibility payment options. This does mean I am required to respond to the demands of the dynamic operational environment to fulfil the flexible payment requirements. The standard working week is 37 hrs and the working day is usually between 7am – 8pm, this can be suited to your needs, again depending on operational requirements. For example, I tend to work longer days when in the office and then I try to work shorter days whilst working from home so I can go ride my horse in the early evening. However, there are expectations to work outside these standard operating hours including weekends, evenings and bank holidays if required in exchange for the flexibility payments.

There are important skills required in this role to be a successful and competent investigator. Some of the most important I think is the need to be inquisitive, open-minded, ability to pay attention to detail and analyse information. We are digging through individuals’ bank accounts, home addresses, telecommunications data, mobile devices and more. You need to be able to pick out key material and evaluate its relevance and value. You should have good communication skills; this includes written as we need to be able to write up evidential material to be clearly understood by CPS and verbal. Verbal is key to not only getting information from witnesses or suspects, but we work as a team in Anti-Corruption and a strong case requires effective communication with all those involved. The list could go on, but I would also say you need a desire to learn, I’d say it’s impossible to know everything in the world of criminal investigations, particularly with ever changing legislation, guidance and policy, so you need to be keen to keep up with the times.

This role offers plenty of training, and there is a wide range of courses available both online and classroom based for both personal and professional development. I have received great support from my manager, the Practical Training Officer (PTO) and from the entire team. It’s so important to learn from others with different knowledge and experience.

I have been asked many a time if I am happy, I made the leap to a new job, and I think I’ve been saying yes since day one. This role brings new opportunities, learning and challenges every day. Working in the criminal investigation’s world is a job like no other, there certainly aren’t any dull days. I do meaningful, exciting and interesting work, I have a great work life balance, and I work within a supportive and fun team. If this sounds like a role that could suit you, make sure to keep your eyes peeled for any future job advertisements!