Joint operation of the Tax Agency, National Police and Europol

• 80 people have been arrested and 53 simultaneous searches have been carried out – in the provinces of Madrid, Barcelona, Malaga and Santander – seizing more than 500,000 dollars and 30,000 euros.

• Investigators estimate that they managed to defraud more than a thousand victims worldwide, mainly elderly people residing in the US, and that it is one of the largest criminal organizations dedicated to this type of crime.

• The organization's management core was based in the Madrid towns of Parla and Fuenlabrada and had branches throughout the country, in the United Kingdom, Mexico and the United States. The US Postal Inspection Service, the Department of Homeland Security, the Portuguese Judicial Police and the British National Crime Agency have collaborated in the operation

June 18, 2022.- Customs Surveillance officials of the Tax Agency, in a joint operation with agents of the National Police and Europol, have dismantled a criminal organization dedicated to international fraud using the "Nigerian letters" method. 80 people have been arrested and 53 simultaneous searches have been carried out – in the provinces of Madrid, Barcelona, Malaga and Santander – seizing more than 500,000 dollars and 30,000 euros. Investigators estimate that they managed to defraud more than a thousand victims worldwide, mainly elderly people residing in the US, and that it is one of the largest criminal organizations dedicated to this type of crime. The organization's management core was based in the Madrid towns of Parla and Fuenlabrada, with branches throughout the country, in the United Kingdom, Mexico and the United States. The US Postal Inspection Service, the US Department of Homeland Security, the Portuguese Judicial Police and the British National Crime Agency collaborated in the operation.

The investigation began at the end of 2019, when agents detected packages from the United States with large amounts of money hidden inside magazines.

Shortly afterwards, and as a result of the international collaboration of tax and police authorities in the affected countries, they discovered that they were dealing with a criminal organisation dedicated to defrauding using the method known as Nigerian letters and whose management team was located in the Community of Madrid.

Shipping throughout Portugal

The modus operandi consisted of ordering a copy shop located in the town of Fuenlabrada to print mass quantities of cards simulating lottery or other prizes, as well as unclaimed inheritances from family members. They were printed in two ways, either with the name and surname of the victims, or in a general way, and then they would acquire individualized labels with personal data and address to place them on the envelopes.

They were then transported to Portugal with huge suitcases – in private cars or on buses dedicated to public road transport – to be sent en masse, since the cost of the service was lower than that offered by Spanish companies. Investigators have estimated that the total cost of all the letters sent could amount to half a million euros.

They functioned as a " call center "

The victims, always elderly and retired, contacted the telephone number listed on the letters and were asked a short questionnaire to find out their purchasing power, deceiving them until they believed they had been the lucky ones. They were told that in order to claim the prize they had to pay an initial amount in bureaucratic fees and taxes, with those affected having to shell out between 1,000 and 30,000 euros.

The organisation had a system of concealing the benefit, which consisted of ordering its victims to remit the alleged payment of the fees by transfer to another potential victim. She was led to believe that she was being loaned the money so that she could complete her payment. She then took out the borrowed money and, together with what she could gather, sent it in cash to a third party, also a victim, who in turn sent it to a member of the organisation in Spain, who was the final recipient. The money was hidden in magazines or catalogues that were intercepted by the Tax Agency's Customs Surveillance Service, thanks to its controls and alerts on package movements at customs.

Once they had the money, they sent it to their country of origin through people in the network dedicated to traveling, known as 'mules', hiding it in luggage or in credit cards.

The investigation culminated in the arrest of 80 people – 61 in Spain, 16 in Portugal and 3 in the United Kingdom – and the carrying out of 53 searches – 24 in Spain, 26 in Portugal and 3 in the United Kingdom. In Spain, the raids were carried out in the Madrid municipalities of Parla and Fuenlabrada, in Santander and in the town of Benalmádena, where 30,000 euros, more than 50,000 dollars, 200 telephone terminals, computers and vehicles were seized. All of them have been brought before the judicial authorities as alleged perpetrators of the crimes of fraud, document forgery, money laundering and membership in a criminal organisation. The number of identified victims exceeds 400, but it is estimated that there may be more than a thousand victims worldwide.