Sagunto Civil Guard Agents (Valencia) they smashed a piece organized gang dedicated to changing the identity of its victims, then making online purchases and requesting loans on behalf of those whose personal data was stolen.
As a result of this investigation, 13 people were arrested. under ‘operation Ponos‘ alleged involvement 629 criminal acts at least about 209 victims. The organization recruited advertisers from different companies. because of their professional commitment, they had access to personal documents. potential customers and taking advantage of this situation, For example, they falsified payrolls to obtain credits they used to purchase goods that they would later resell.
The Civil Guards disperse a gang of impersonations to solicit quick loans and buy goods to resell them.
A criminal complaint was filed against the detainees aged between 19 and 59. offenses of fraud, falsification of documents, identity theft, disclosure of secrets, embezzlement, public health (drug trafficking) and belonging to a criminal group. Leaders went to prison
As pointed out this Friday by the Armed Institute, have been affected across Spain: Valencia, Castellón, Alicante, Canary Islands, Madrid, Ciudad Real, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Granada, Córdoba, Segovia, Cuenca, Murcia, Gijón, Zaragoza, Teruel, Navarra, Balearic Islands, Barcelona, Lleida, Seville , Bizkaia , A Coruña , Cantabria and Albacete.
Seven house calls
and it has been done One registration in seven and one establishment in houses in the Valencian and Catalan towns of Xàtiva, Benetússer, Quart de Poblet, Hospitalet de Llobregat, Sant Pere Molanta or the city of Valencia.
Civil Guard agents met during the investigation. numerous fraud complaints that the authors use a very similar ‘modus operandi’.
identity fraud
Specifically, when they get a photo of their victims’ DNIs, They spoofed their identities and purchased the products they financed online on behalf of the affected. They then resold what they bought on apps and pages for buying and selling second-hand items when they received it.
For this reason, and taking into account the similarity of the criminal acts, an investigation was launched to reveal the operations and identities of the perpetrators.
Agents confirmed falsifying payrolls and other personal documents required for opening bank accounts and renting a telephone line, with credit institutions and telephone providers and debt-creating and The writers came to receive more than a million euros.
This SSI Treasury by analyzing all payrolls and personal data, it was able to identify more affected people than originally existed.
The organization had recruited sales representatives from different companies who had access to their customers’ personal documents.
Victims, in some cases, They were not aware of the debts incurred. Until Civil Guard agents contact them or non-paying agencies claim pending payments. Some even saw how their names were included in the Unpaid Acceptance Registry (RAI) and then they had to prove that they were the victim of a scam and that they were not the ones applying for the loan or making the purchases.
Left
It was also possible to confirm that the organization had regional operational cells in places such as Huelva, Valencia, Tarragona and Barcelona. These groups infiltrated their employees in strategic jobs to obtain the necessary documents from their victims to commit crimes.
In operation, Nearly one hundred civilian guards were mobilized For records conducted in the Valencian Community and Catalonia that interfered with various documents relating to the commission of the crimes under investigation, in addition to the property they had acquired on loans and had not yet sold.
The value of seized objects can exceed 100 thousand euros and among them a large number of large televisions, a DJ mixer priced at more than 4,000 euros, laptops, phones, photography equipment, cutting-edge bicycles, etc. there was. In summary, objects with high value and fast selling in the market.
Also in the records 10 kilos of marijuana, multiple doses of cocaine and sensitive scales were seized.
The Civil Guard also realized that the heads of different regional cells had coordinated leaders to commit crimes by intruding into autonomous communities to complicate the job of the police.
For this reason, members of the organization constantly changed housingthey sent money abroad and used more than 700 different phone lines to communicate.
One of the organization’s top executives has requested 23 judicial seizures from various courts in Spain. Another, who falsified medical prescriptions to buy prescription drugs, tried to escape by hiding in an illegally occupied social center. But he was eventually arrested and rescued while in a stolen vehicle in 2022.