Recently, law enforcement agencies from multiple European countries jointly dismantled a highly organized cross-border fraud case. The group set up fake investment platforms, using deceptive tactics to lure over a hundred victims worldwide into investing funds, with the total amount involved exceeding €3 million.
This operation was jointly carried out by the police forces of Germany, Cyprus, Albania, the United Kingdom, and Israel, with full technical support from the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation (Eurojust) and the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol).
The criminal group targeted investors seeking high returns, initially attracting small investments with promises of “low risk, short-term profits.” They then falsified transaction data on the platform’s backend to create the illusion of stable earnings.
As victims gradually lowered their guard, group members posed as professional financial advisors, using frequent calls to pressure them into investing more money.
In reality, none of the funds entered legitimate financial markets; instead, they were directly transferred to crypto wallets controlled by the criminals.
Although current records show over a hundred victims, authorities believe the actual number of victims could be much larger.
The case originated when German police received a report from a couple who claimed their life savings had been consumed by a fraudulent investment platform.
After several months of tracking, law enforcement successfully identified the criminal network spanning Europe and Asia.
In a raid in Belgium and Latvia in September 2022, two key members were arrested on the spot, and digital criminal evidence was seized. This led to the identification of seven other core suspects, including the mastermind responsible for managing the fraudulent call center.
By the beginning of this month, police from multiple countries launched a second wave of coordinated actions, seizing a large number of electronic devices, financial documents, and cash reserves in Albania, Cyprus, and Israel.
Cypriot authorities have arrested one suspect, who may be extradited to Germany for trial.
This case highlights the importance of international cooperation: Eurojust coordinated judicial procedures among the countries to speed up the investigation, while Europol set up a mobile command center to provide real-time intelligence analysis and assist with cross-border evidence collection.
This operation is a strategic achievement of the EU’s “European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats” (EMPACT), which has listed financial fraud as a key target for crackdown since 2022.
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