Three arrested for scamming almost 100,000 euros in fraudulent internet purchases
The scammers offered items that the victim never received after paying for them
For this, they usurped the identity of users with good opinions in a popular online sales portal.
The Civil Guard has currently located 129 victims in 12 different countries -17 of them in Spain-
Within the framework of the Ibersan operation, the Civil Guard has arrested three people and investigates five others for having defrauded a total of 99,235 euros through the fraudulent sale of products in a well-known internet portal. The eight members of this gang are charged with the crimes of continued fraud, money laundering and belonging to a criminal organization.
The scammers usurped profiles with a good reputation on this sales website and offered products that did not really exist, and therefore did not send to buyers after they had already paid for the merchandise.
International scam
At the moment, the Civil Guard has located 129 victims from these 12 countries: Germany, Austria, Italy, Belgium, Holland, France, Hungary, Slovenia, United Kingdom, Costa Rica, Singapore and Spain. Among the scammed buyers there are 17 Spaniards.
The operation began after a complaint lodged in the town of Tauste (Zaragoza), in which suspicious economic transfers from several countries were reported. The complaint also included numerous claims from foreign banks for these transactions. In just two days, the account in the name of the scammers received more than 6,000 euros.
The researchers were able to locate these eight people – of Romanian nationality – who were behind the scams and who acted in a coordinated manner from different countries of the European Union. The respondents received the money in banks in Hungary, Denmark, Romania, Poland and Spain. From the 38 bank accounts located, detainees ordered transfers with which they laundered the money.
The operation has had the collaboration of Europol and Eurojust, as well as the Romanian police forces that made the three arrests possible thanks to the European arrest warrant issued from Spain.
The Civil Guard continues to analyze the data collected in the investigation.
More information in the OPC of the Comandancia de Zaragoza, at 696957782.