An international criminal network, related to the sale of dogs, was dismantled in a joint operation by the Civil Guard and the Colombian National Police. The organization deceived around 250 people through fraud in the sale of pets, accumulating more than 35 million euros in cryptocurrency transactions and three million euros in money deposited in Spanish territory.
The operation, called “Canmoney”, began after a report of fraud related to the purchase of a pet dog that was never delivered. Scammers offered dogs for around 500 euros through online buying and selling portals. To gain the victims’ trust in selling the dogs, they used falsified identity documents, usurped from other victims.
After the first payment, the alleged sellers demanded a second amount. If the victim refused, death threats were made via messages or phone calls. In some cases, victims were sent images of firearms to increase intimidation.
Strategies and hierarchical structure
Profits from fraud were deposited in bank accounts and quickly converted into cryptocurrencies to make it difficult for authorities to track them. These cryptocurrencies were sent to hundreds of addresses operated by the organization’s leaders, located in Colombia and Cameroon.
In Spain and Colombia, people at the lowest levels of the organization opened bank accounts to receive the illicit funds. Subsequently, these values were converted into cryptocurrencies and transferred to addresses operated by the leaders.
A central element of the operation was an owner of a communications store in Spain, who used his knowledge of the sector to act as a front man. He and his partner deposited around three million euros in ATMs spread across several provinces, converting the amounts into cryptocurrencies and further complicating the detection of funds.
Operation results
The operation culminated in 28 arrests and 30 individuals investigated, involving a total of 681 crimes, including 335 frauds, 158 identity thefts, 95 document forgeries, 33 threats and 60 cases of money laundering.
12 searches were carried out, nine in Spain and three in Colombia, which resulted in the seizure of cell phones used in fraud, computers, vehicles, money, illegal firearms and other assets.
This macro-operation had the cooperation of several international agencies, including Interpol, Europol and the Criminal Investigation Directorate (DIJIN) of the Colombian National Police. The joint work made it possible to dismantle the organization and recover important information for combating cyber and financial crime.
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