- Joined
- May 15, 2016
- Messages
- 4,022
- Likes
- 2,574
- Points
- 1,730
A joint operation by the Belgian and Dutch intelligence services resulted in the arrest of eight suspects involved in large-scale telephone fraud. The operation involved 17 searches in various areas of Belgium and the Netherlands.
The criminals used phishing links in emails, instant messages and SMS, luring victims to fake bank websites. The entered data was used for subsequent deception: victims were called on behalf of “bank employees” or the “anti-fraud team”, convincing them of the need for help. In this way, the criminals emptied bank accounts, causing damage estimated at millions of euros.
To carry out the operations, the criminals rented luxury apartments and used them as call centers. The main targets were elderly people, who were sometimes visited directly at home. Most of the crimes took place in Belgium, but the main organizers were in the Netherlands.
With the stolen money, the criminals bought expensive watches, jewelry and threw parties in elite clubs. They actively demonstrated their "successful" life on social networks, sometimes posting photos with famous people to increase their status. In one of the discovered correspondences, the criminals boasted that they had deceived even elderly people. The manipulations were based on precise knowledge of the psychological weaknesses of the victims. In cases of failure, the scammers did not hesitate to be rude and insult their interlocutors.
According to the investigation, residents of at least 10 European countries were affected, and the total damage amounted to several million euros. The police managed to seize luxury accessories and cash, electronic devices, and firearms.
The investigation began in 2022 in Belgium. Later, Dutch investigators joined in, as the main suspects were Dutch citizens. Europol and Eurojust helped coordinate the actions of the police in the two countries and provided analytical support.
Advice to citizens on how to avoid fraud:
The criminals used phishing links in emails, instant messages and SMS, luring victims to fake bank websites. The entered data was used for subsequent deception: victims were called on behalf of “bank employees” or the “anti-fraud team”, convincing them of the need for help. In this way, the criminals emptied bank accounts, causing damage estimated at millions of euros.
To carry out the operations, the criminals rented luxury apartments and used them as call centers. The main targets were elderly people, who were sometimes visited directly at home. Most of the crimes took place in Belgium, but the main organizers were in the Netherlands.
With the stolen money, the criminals bought expensive watches, jewelry and threw parties in elite clubs. They actively demonstrated their "successful" life on social networks, sometimes posting photos with famous people to increase their status. In one of the discovered correspondences, the criminals boasted that they had deceived even elderly people. The manipulations were based on precise knowledge of the psychological weaknesses of the victims. In cases of failure, the scammers did not hesitate to be rude and insult their interlocutors.
| Seized luxury goods (Rotterdam police) |
The investigation began in 2022 in Belgium. Later, Dutch investigators joined in, as the main suspects were Dutch citizens. Europol and Eurojust helped coordinate the actions of the police in the two countries and provided analytical support.
Advice to citizens on how to avoid fraud:
- Don't trust messages that ask you to urgently update your bank account details.
- Ignore account blocking notifications.
- Check the URLs - they should start with " https://" .
- Be careful when buying from classified ads sites, especially if the seller asks for prepayment.