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Gangsters from eastern Europe are using the UK banking system and property market to launder money, leading crimefighters confirmed yesterday. Some have brought their families to Britain and enrolled their children in private schools.

Intelligence experts from around the world discussed the growing threat yesterday at a London conference hosted by the National Criminal Intelligence Service. John Hamilton, NCIS's director of intelligence, confirmed that eastern Europeans had made contact with British criminals, some of whom had travelled to Russia to impart their expertise.

Last year UK detectives received about 200 reports of suspected money-laundering with eastern European links, and regional crime squads are investigating seven cases of money-laundering and fraud, two of them involving more than pounds 50m.