An investigation for organized gang scams was opened after a Crédit Mutuel de Strasbourg agency granted 30 million euros in fraudulent loans to Romanian nationals, we learned on Thursday from concordant sources.
Read also: The five faces of financial fraud according to Tracfin
The preliminary investigation was opened following
“numerous loans (...) granted by the local Caisse du Crédit Mutuel Strasbourg-Gutenberg to several dozen civil societies created by members of (...) original families foreign, with a view to the acquisition of real estate, ”
indicates in a press release the specialized interregional jurisdiction (Jirs) of Nancy, confirming information from the regional daily
Les Latest Nouvelles d'Alsace
(DNA).
The investigation, entrusted to the research section of the Strasbourg gendarmerie, will have to determine in particular
"if false documents or fraudulent maneuvers were used to allow the granting of these loans by the banking establishment"
, adds Jirs.
Credit Mutuel
"Filed a complaint against X in November,"
a spokesperson for the mutual institution told AFP.
The banking group
"does not make any other comments due to the ongoing investigation
.
"
A possible "money laundering network"
It was during an internal investigation at the bank that
“abnormal flows”
were detected, a source close to the matter told AFP.
According to the same source, the disputed loans granted by the agency amount to 30 million euros.
The internal investigation in particular made it possible to determine that several individuals who had obtained credits were in fact linked by
“a community of interests”
, evoking a possible
“money laundering network”
, according to the same source.
The Strasbourg agency implicated would have thus
"granted 80 credits on the basis of fraudulent documents via a Strasbourg intermediary"
, write DNA, a newspaper also owned by Crédit Mutuel.
All the clients who obtained these loans came from this
"same business owner"
, a sort of broker who brought the loan applications
"turnkey"
and who
"had contracted with the fund"
questioned, confirmed the source close to the file.
The internal investigation thus revealed that Romanian nationals from the same family
"settled in France (...) would have used false documents to set up"
credit files relating
"to real estate projects, in particular in the Paris region. "
, Write the DNA again, according to which
" disciplinary proceedings "
were carried out
" against the director and administrators of the fund "
.
The governance of the incriminated fund has since been entirely
"renewed"
, according to the source familiar with the matter.
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