For ten days, a young man focused on a flashy lifestyle while quietly amassing 4,687 euros by using someone else’s card. He began August 2020 with plans that stretched from Madrid to nearby locales like Albacete and Alicante, and even involved cloning a card from a Zamora client. This allowed unauthorized access to savings accounts until a financial institution noticed a sudden shift in his behavior and raised alarms about the new spending pattern.
The trail showed two major purchases: one for 953.50 euros at a Madrid store and another of 714 euros directed to the owner’s account at a shopping center in the same capital. These transactions appeared in the banking records during the period under investigation.
Still, ten days brought twelve withdrawals of 300 euros each, all scattered across about a dozen towns and cities in Madrid, Castilla-La Mancha, and the Levante region. Investigators eventually identified the alleged perpetrator as a teenager with the initials OB, who had assumed another person’s identity to perform the fraudulent transfers.
Half a year in prison and two years without committing a crime
The individual was found guilty of fraud and received a sentence of six months in prison. He was also ordered to compensate the savings institution with 4,687.50 euros plus accrued interest and to cover trial costs, in connection with the criminal offense charged by the Zamora Criminal Court. The judge suspended the execution of the prison term, effectively delaying confinement to ensure no new offenses occurred over the following two years. The young man, who already had a police record for similar acts, admitted that he copied the card to commit fraud against two people during the period from August 2 to August 12, 2020, as documented by the Zamora Prosecutor’s Office.
He is on trial for several crimes reported in Asturias
More cases are pending against the defendant for acts similar in nature to the Zamora incident, including fraud committed before the card cloning at a savings institution in Zamora. Some of these alleged offenses were reported in Pola de Laviana, Asturias, with criminal proceedings still underway. During ongoing investigations, the defendant’s attorney sought to have the Zamora case halted and moved to a different jurisdiction managed by an Ayudantía Court in Laviana, but the judge refused. The court ruled that the Asturias offenses predated the Zamora scheme, and therefore the case would remain where it was filed.
Across the spectrum of similar scams, the common method involved cloning payment cards and exploiting the cardholder’s secret numbers recorded at ATMs. To reduce risk, financial institutions advise customers to be vigilant during transactions and to guard PINs closely when entering them at machines. Protective steps recommended to prevent card cloning include personal observation of the ATM surroundings, shielding the keypad, and promptly reporting any suspicious activity to banks or authorities.
These incidents underscore the ongoing challenge of card cloning and the importance of adopting robust security practices. Financial entities in Spain continue to update their procedures and technology to deter fraud, while authorities emphasize the role of public awareness and careful account monitoring in preventing unauthorized access to funds. In the broader context of consumer protection, this case highlights how quickly a single set of forged transactions can escalate and how critical timely reporting and proper legal channels are for addressing financial crimes.