Rip off instead of vacation: Houseboat scammers from NRW in court

Created: 06/09/2022, 15:10

By: Mick Oberbusch

A 43-year-old ripped off vacationers with fake houseboat pages - now he is on trial (symbolic image, IDZRW montage).

© Marie Zahout/dpa & Silas Stein/dpa

A man from North Rhine-Westphalia who ripped off holidaymakers with fake homepages and thus caused damage of around 80,000 euros will be on trial from June 9th.

Cologne – Word should have gotten around by now that there are a number of sites on the Internet that dubiously try to rip off online users for their money.

Even as far as Cologne, where a suspect who was now 43 years old was arrested in this matter in December 2021.

It is related to fake houseboat sites that caused a stir in the Müritz region in the summer and in November.

The German is still in custody, the trial begins at 10 a.m. on Thursday (June 9) at the Neubrandenburg district court in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, reports 24RHEIN.

Man cheats vacationers with houseboats on the Internet - massive damage

The 43-year-old from North Rhine-Westphalia is accused of commercial fraud in more than 140 cases.

Together with an accomplice, he is said to have operated fake websites on which holidaymakers were offered houseboats and holiday apartments.

Cheated interested parties paid a deposit of up to 600 euros, but did not find a houseboat, a contact person or the holiday apartment on arrival - or they did not travel at all.

The accused is said to be responsible for damage of more than 80,000 euros.

Fake houseboat offers: 43-year-old is caught by the police in Cologne

• What?

  A 43-year-old German is said to have ripped off his victims via websites where he offered houseboats for rent.

  According to this, the "vacationers" transferred around 600 euros plus a deposit as a deposit to the vacation site, which, however, did not report back.

  There was total damage of around 80,000 euros.

• When?

  Summer 2021 until November

• Where?

  Müritz region (Mecklenburg-West Pomerania)

• Perpetrator?

  now caught, is in custody, trial begins on June 9, 2022

He had been abroad for a long time and, after months of investigation, was caught in Cologne at Cologne/Bonn Airport at the end of 2021.

The trial of the accomplice, who was tracked down in Belgium just a few weeks ago, is scheduled to begin later.

Rheinsberg in Brandenburg, Waren an der Müritz and Mellenthin on Usedom were named as contact points, but there were no offices at all.

The Mecklenburg Lake District and the Havel area, which extends from Berlin to Waren and Schwerin, have been popular houseboat areas for years.

Rip-off on the Internet: not only enjoy holiday and houseboat offers with caution

But the Internet is not only ripped off with fake holiday sites and dubious houseboat offers.

Among other things, the homepage "kirchenaustritt24.de" pretends that you can conveniently organize your exit from the church online there.

This is also a scam offer.