As a result of the investigation, there were nine arrests June 21 in the Netherlands, 24 houses searched in the Netherlands, and seizures including firearms, ammunition, jewelry, electronic devices, cash and cryptocurrency.
As a part of the scheme, the suspected criminal group contacted victims by email, text message and through mobile messaging applications. These messages were sent by the members of the gang and contained a phishing link leading to a bogus banking website.
The criminal network managed to steal several million euros from their victims with this fraudulent activity, officials said. They used money mules to transfer these funds from the victim’s accounts and to cash out the fraudulently obtained money. Members of the group have also been connected with cases of drugs trafficking and possible firearms trafficking.
During the operation, Europol deployed three experts to the Netherlands to provide real-time analytical support to investigators on the ground, forensics and technical expertise.