Fake online trading: young couple from Latina accused of fraud and self-laundering for over 600.000 euros

The State Police, as part of a complex investigation into the phenomenon of false online trading, has carried out the precautionary measure of the ban on expatriation at the expense of two Italian citizens residents in the province of Latina, issued by the GIP at the Court of Turin at the request of the local Public Prosecutor's Office.

The investigative investigations conducted by the Turin Cyber ​​Security Operations Centre and coordinated by the Postal Police and Cyber ​​Security Service have allowed us to ascertain that the investigated couple, through call-centre style telephone calls, proposed to potential victims identified also through profiling companies, very high financial returns in exchange for large cash payments.

The alleged brokers, in the scam calls, represented the false commercial proposal of “safe” investment plans, inducing the victim to register on specially created financial platforms. These portals simulated the existence of fake investment fluctuation charts, such as to generate in the unfortunate victim absolute confidence in the validity of the investment.

The investigation activity of the Postal Police, which lasted almost two years, focused on the complex analysis of the financial flows attributable to the suspects who in a short time transferred the money to accounts in the name of shell companies, based abroad, after having carried out a series of operations and transfers, including through cryptocurrency wallet, suitable for hinder the identification of the criminal origin.

This methodology has allowed cyber investigators to Identify victims of fake trading, still unaware of having fallen into the scam, thus preventing further negative financial consequences.

The executive phase, also characterized by the direct intervention of personnel from the COSC Postal Police of Turin, was completed thanks to the collaboration of the Operational Section for Cyber ​​Security of Latina.

The investigation hits one of the most widespread economic-criminal phenomena of recent years in terms of patrimonial damage, which brings with it the concrete risk of the victims themselves falling into the same scam again, often contacted by the scammers even months or years after the first false investment, under the guise of debt collection companies, or of law enforcement agencies charged with unlikely direct refunds of money, however in exchange for the payment of phantom taxes.

It should be noted that the proceedings in progress are at the preliminary investigation stage and that therefore the suspects must be considered not guilty until a final judicial order is issued.

In order to recognize and avoid these forms of fraud, the Postal Police recommends

• Verify that the entity proposing online trading operations is licensed, by visiting the websites of Consob and the Bank of Italy;
• See the section “WARNING AND PUBLICATIONS FOR INVESTORS” of ESMA (the European CONSOB) and verify whether, with respect to the trader, other European authorities similar to CONSOB have published a warning to users;
• Check, through web search engines, for the presence of any blog or forum on the trading company or website;
• Be wary of brokers who offer a out-of-market performance (projecting an economic return in percentages of disproportionate size);
• Trading with brokers and on platforms well-known and proven reliable;
• Do not fall into the further trap of fraudsters who, under the pretext of unblocking the refunds of what has already been "invested", request the payment of further sums of money: this is a real scam. extortion.