They systematically attacked elderly people in the Val-de-Marne.
Four individuals under the age of 25 have been indicted and placed in pre-trial detention for “
theft and fraud in an organized gang
”, indicates a police source to
Figaro
.
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After several weeks of investigation, the police officers of the territorial security of Val-de-Marne (94) managed to track down these crooks thanks to their still similar modus operandi.
The scammers spotted their targets, systematically elderly people, at bank ATMs.
Then they went to their homes pretending to be a bank agent.
Their goal: to obtain the victims' credit cards.
Fake Quality Thefts
Last February, a 90-year-old woman was one of the first victims of this organized gang.
While making a withdrawal from a bank in Saint-Maur-des-Fossés, "
an individual arrested her, making her believe that she had lost a ticket
", details a police source familiar with the matter.
At the end of the exchange, the scammer managed to find the victim's address.
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That same evening, the young man knocked on her door and claimed to be a bank employee.
Claiming fraud on his account, the scammer managed to obtain the bank card and the victim's confidential code.
Shortly after, the old lady saw a withdrawal of 300 euros and filed a complaint.
After a neighborhood investigation, the police obtained the report of the crook, whose car was subsequently identified thanks to CCTV images.
Quickly, the investigators assigned him "
another false quality theft
", adds the police source.
This time, the scammer had contacted his victim by telephone pretending to be a bank agent.
On the same day, an accomplice went to the target's home to inform her that she had to secure her card and jewelry.
After extracting the bank passwords from the victim, the criminals again made several withdrawals.
Six arrests, four indictments
The arrest of six of them took place on March 14th.
A surveillance device allowed investigators to arrest a person in Paris, while he was trying to withdraw money with a stolen card.
Passengers waiting for him in a vehicle were also arrested.
A little later, three other people were arrested at their homes.
At the end of the various searches, the police discovered "
several telephones, a little over 2000 euros and luxury items (watches, bags...)
", specifies a source close to the file.
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The investigations carried out by the territorial security of Val-de-Marne, through telephone analyzes and video surveillance images, made it possible to cross-check 18 similar acts committed by these crooks throughout the Ile-de-France.
All deny the charges against them.
Four individuals were finally brought to the Créteil court on March 15, indicted and placed in pre-trial detention.