As Sherlock Holmes once mused: “Crime is common. Logic is rare.”

Indeed, it seems fraudster Aaron Cowan was rather lacking in logic when he decided to pose as a police officer and use the name of a fictional detective from the famed Sir Arthur Conan Doyle series to commit his crimes.

It was only a matter of time before suspicions were raised that one Inspector Greg Lestrade, who turned up at mobile phone shops and bookmakers across Kent purporting to investigate fake bank notes, may not be who he claimed.

And it was Cowan’s decision to take on the mantle of Insp Greg Lestrade that ultimately proved his downfall.

The 24-year-old was arrested after one of his victims recognised the false name and realised something was amiss.

He was was subsequently charged with several counts of fraud and of impersonating a police officer, having obtained cash and goods from a number of businesses.