Fraud

They set up a scam with fake government letters - What they told their unsuspecting victims

In a heart-wrenching tale of deceit and betrayal, a 61-year-old man fell victim to a love scam orchestrated by a Bulgarian woman, resulting in a staggering loss of BGN 45,000.

A 47-year-old woman was sentenced to eight years in prison by a Thessaloniki court on Monday, for her involvement in a network scamming people via telephone.

The criminal network mainly targeted elderly women, telling them that their close relatives had been involved in car accidents, and that they would need to pay large sums of money for supposed surgeries and other medical costs.

In a remarkable display of vigilance, police officers in Varna thwarted a phone scam by halting an entire bus to warn a potential victim. The incident, which unfolded in Devnya, underscores the dangers of phone scams and the crucial role of law enforcement in preventing financial fraud, as reported by the Ministry of the Interior.

Reports of phone scams are on the rise across Bulgaria, with recent months witnessing a notable increase in fraudulent calls, particularly targeting the elderly population, according to police analysis.

Europol's Operational Task Force (OTF) in Limassol, Cyprus uncovered a criminal network orchestrating sham marriages in Cyprus for irregular migration into the EU on Monday.

The investigation suggested that the criminal network was also involved in human trafficking and money laundering activities, as well as forcing victims into bogus marriages for immigration purposes.

Experts are sounding the alarm as online fraud in Greece quadrupled between 2018 and 2023. According to the Cybercrime Unit, 5,261 incidents were recorded last year, up from 1,093 in 2018. The recruitment of artificial intelligence is further worrying experts as now perpetrators can create more believable messages.

The Higher Education Council (YÖK) has collaborated with the Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK) to inform students about the dangers they may face if their bank accounts are used for illegal purposes.

A criminal organization engaging in tax fraud totaling over 15 million euros and tax evasion of 70 million euros was dismantled by the Economic Police Directorate in Greece, reported the Hellenic Police (ELAS) on Wednesday.

One of the new methods of fraud that has emerged in recent times is to copy the websites of well-known restaurants and to ask the customers to pay a deposit for a fake reservation.

Scammers use artificial intelligence systems to copy the websites of famous restaurants and share all the information about the restaurant on these websites as if they were real.