Raids against cyber criminals in Germany and Italy

The Leipzig public prosecutor's office, together with the local and Italian police and Europol as well as EuroJust, carried out raids on ten properties in Germany and Italy on Wednesday. This was part of an international investigation against several suspects on charges of joint gang and commercial fraud and counterfeiting.

In a statement, the Saxony police explained that the suspects caused millions in losses between February 2023 and July 2024. They used phishing to gain access to the IT systems of public institutions, cities and municipal companies. There, they manipulated and forwarded invoices to companies and institutions so that the victims transferred invoice amounts to the fraudsters rather than to business partners.

Five suspects at the center of the investigation

Investigators have identified four male and one female suspect aged between 53 and 74 with German and Italian citizenship respectively. On September 24, search warrants were executed for ten properties in Bavaria and North Rhine-Westphalia as well as in the Naples, South Tyrol, Treveso and Verona areas. More than 60 German and Italian police officers were involved. They encountered several suspects, some of whom were questioned.

During the operation, the officers were able to provisionally seize "assets amounting to a six-figure sum, including cash, valuable jewelry and diamonds". They also seized "various electronic items, including numerous cell phones and computers as well as several data carriers". These will now be analyzed by special forces in the coming months; the investigation continues.

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(dmk)