The Office of Fair Trading has admitted to an alleged fraud in its own accounts, resulting in a loss of £250,000 for the government department due to 'control weakness' in the Accounts Payable process. The office that spends thousands of pounds a year encouraging businesses to safeguard against scams, has now itself become a victim of alleged internal fraud. Its annual report reveals the office incurred 'a cash loss of £250,000, of which £97,000 occurred in 2008-09 and £153,000 occurred in 2007-08'. 'This was due to an alleged fraud made possible by a control weakness in the Accounts Payable process,' it added. A spokeswoman for the OFT said no comment could be issued as the case is now 'subject to legal proceedings'.