On October 25, the National Police of Madrid arrested nine people who formed a criminal group to carry out fraudulent operations through a fictitious company and illegally take private cars.
As the National Police reported in a statement, the detainees used vehicle transfer contracts under the pretext of selling them, so that once the owner changed, they would take ownership and transfer them to third parties. Thanks to this method, scams have been committed to appropriate a quantity greater than 50 vehiclescausing more than 70 victims and around 800,000 euros defrauded.
As the investigations progressed, the researchers were able to verify that They have always acquired mid-range or high-end cars. To lure the victims, they offered a price higher than the market value, with the false promise that upon the sale of the said vehicles, the owners would receive this attractive sum of money.
For this, the company made them sign a transfer contract under the pretext of acting as an intermediary to manage the transfer and make payment once sold. If they do not comply, they will issue a refund.
Eventually, they used this commitment to change ownership of the car and make it their own. Once in possession, they looked for a buyer and made the sale as if it were their property. Additionally, the person who purchased it was completely unaware of these events.thus creating new victims in the fraudulent network.
Blocking of 21 accounts
As soon as the money from the transaction was in their possession, it was transferred to one of the bank accounts they owned or withdrawn in cash to make it disappear. Eventually they perfected the scam, completely ignoring the payment for the vehicle agreed in the transfer contract with the first seller.
As the investigation progressed, on October 25, a police force was established which resulted in several entries and searches, including one at a dealership, also carrying out a blockade and seizure of 21 bank accounts. Various documents, vehicle keys, an imitation firearm and computer equipment were also seized.
The operation ended with the arrest of nine people suspected of committing the crimes of membership in a criminal group fraud, misappropriation and falsification of documents, then being made available to the judicial authority.
