The Bobigny Criminal Court on Wednesday, March 2, sentenced six fake locksmiths, who made their victims pay exorbitant bills, to terms of up to three years in prison for organized fraud.
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Aged 25 to 54, the defendants were prosecuted for having carried out non-existent, poorly done or overcharged repairs, mainly in Ile-de-France and Gironde, in 2019 and 2020. About fifty individuals had filed a complaint.
Noting the "
particular gravity of the facts
" and the large number of victims, the judges sentenced to four years in prison, one of which was suspended, the two leaders of this "
pyramid structure
" which generated more than one million euros. revenue in eighteen months.
The 33-year-old computer scientist who centralized the intervention orders and his 25-year-old partner, a repeat offender who managed the “
employees
” and harassed them to “
make numbers
”, were arrested at the hearing to be immediately imprisoned.
During the trial in January, the prosecution had requested five years in prison against them, two of which were suspended for the computer scientist.
The two men are also banned for life from managing a company.
Damage estimated at 100,000 euros
Instead of the announced starting price of 70 euros, the victims found themselves forced to pay between 2,500 and 10,000 euros to open or repair their door.
These sums were paid to fictitious companies domiciled in Seine-Saint-Denis before being disseminated, in particular in Spain and Israel.
For the fifty victims identified by the investigators, especially the elderly or vulnerable, the damage was estimated during the investigation at nearly 100,000 euros.
Two “
locksmiths
”, who “
intervened with the victims when they had no competence in the matter
” noted the court, received ten and twelve months in prison suspended.
Two “
straw managers
” of fictitious companies were sentenced to two years in prison.
