The Civil Guard has clarified a scam of false financial investments that caused damages of almost 40,000 euros to a resident of Toledo and has identified a presumed perpetrator of French nationality residing in the province of Girona. The woman, however, is nowhere to be found and has not been located for now.
The complaint was filed through the police electronic headquarters and the investigation has been taken over by the Cybercommand team, which has analyzed the communications held with the victim and the money trail to try to determine the responsibility of those involved.
Recruitment through social networks
The investigation places the start of the fraud in several advertisements disseminated on social networks, where investment opportunities with high profitability were offered. After clicking on one of those links, the affected person was redirected to a WhatsApp group managed by a fake professor presented as a finance expert.
From there, the authors allegedly deployed a psychological manipulation process based on the analysis of the victim's profile. According to the investigation, they received investment recommendations supposedly adapted to their interests and, in addition, they were assigned a virtual assistant to resolve doubts and reinforce the credibility of the scheme.
A promise of quick benefits
The fraud advanced to the invitation of a supposed select group of investors. The operations were managed through an application installed on the complainant's mobile phone, from which the instructions to invest were channeled.
Once confidence was consolidated, the victim made nine bank transfers for a total amount close to 40,000 euros. The scammers' promise was to achieve returns of approximately 15% in a short time, although the agents maintain that this money never generated any real profit.
International Money Tracking
During the investigation, the Guardia Civil has managed to identify a presumed responsible party, a French woman linked to the province of Girona, although her location is still pending. The case remains under investigation to clarify the final destination of the funds and the possible role of other individuals.
In parallel, European investigation orders have been requested from Romania, Luxembourg, Italy, and Denmark to trace the economic trail. A rogatory commission has also been issued to Ireland with the aim of reconstructing the movement of money and fully clarifying the facts.