Yes. This is an all too common story all over the world now, not just in the UK. It may have been illegal for the person concerned to solicit these funds, and a call to the United Kingdom Financial Services Authority Financial Services Authority helpline may be in order. Serious cases of multiple ripoff schemes have been referred to the SFO (UK Serious Fraud Office). It is important to follow up, as you may be preventing other users suffering the same fate.
For example
Mallorca expats hit by £20m ‘fraudster’ - Times Online
Most serious of all is people not being warned about overgearing accounts, and ridiculous gearing like 500:1. Trading on this kind of margin is the financial equivalent of driving a car with dicky stearing along a curved and variable cliff edge at high speed. The reduction of maximum gearing in US forex accounts down to 50:1 is a very sensible move. Unless you really know what you are doing, high gearing is crazy. Just suicidal.
Of course in this case the so called trader may just have pocketed the money.
Larry Levy
TraderSpeak.com