Por Pablo Arranz 
La Guardia Civil, within the framework of operation ‘Fake James’, has arrested 21 people and investigated four others for defrauding 1.5 million euros through the ‘love scam’, where they pretended to be in romantic relationships to deceive 70 individuals in the provinces of Alicante, Madrid, Navarra, Álava, Sevilla, Vizcaya, and Murcia.
This information was provided by the Armed Institute in a statement, detailing that the investigation began after a victim reported being scammed of over 94,000 euros, believing they were in a romantic relationship with someone who claimed to have financial difficulties.
The organization used their own victim recruiters who deceived in a natural and seemingly normal manner. They obtained information about their victims through social networks or other means like email and even mobile phone numbers.
Once they had this information, they contacted the victims, pretending to be a real person using a fictitious profile picture and claiming to have a non-existent job. After gaining the trust of their victims over time, even developing emotional or romantic relationships, they would simulate financial problems.
Ultimately, the victims would agree to help the supposed criminals by depositing large sums of money into bank accounts provided through instant messaging apps.
A «PERFECTLY STRUCTURED» NETWORK FOR DECEPTION
The Guardia Civil’s Technological Crimes Team took on the investigation and located at least 70 individuals who had fallen victim to this deceitful method in the provinces of Madrid, Navarra, Alicante, Álava, Sevilla, Vizcaya, and Murcia. The network, «perfectly structured,» operated not only in Spain but also across Europe and in some African countries.
They had different roles assigned, with some members focused on recruiting and emotionally manipulating victims, while others forged documents to open bank accounts or create «phantom companies» later on.
In addition, those responsible for creating bank accounts with false or «mule» data also engaged in laundering the illegally obtained money into the legal market. They purchased goods to be transported to African countries or directly sent the money to these nations.
During the investigation, the agents managed to gather information on the individuals comprising this criminal organization. In total, seven raids were conducted in two locations in Navarra and five in Madrid.
Furthermore, 21 members have been arrested and four other individuals are under investigation for crimes of fraud, money laundering, and involvement in a criminal organization. 93 bank accounts holding 1.5 million euros have been frozen, and four vehicles have been seized.
HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF FROM LOVE CYBERSCAMMERS
The Guardia Civil offers several recommendations to citizens to avoid falling victim to ‘love scams’, such as safeguarding personal information and not sharing private data, verifying suspicious profiles, adjusting social media privacy settings, avoiding hasty decisions and monetary requests, and reporting suspicious profiles. If someone has been a victim of this scam, it’s crucial to keep screenshots and conversations that can support their case for filing a report with the State Security Forces and Corps.