The First Section of the Las Palmas Provincial Court is currently trying the Gran Canaria branch of an organization that allegedly defrauded a thousand foreigners in Tenerife in early 2016. Eleven accused individuals will be in the dock throughout the week, in a trial that is expected to last until July 19. The prosecution is seeking sentences ranging from two to eight years in prison and compensation of 610,043 euros to Servired, the Spanish Payment Media Society, which was the last affected when the account holders involved in the alleged fraud canceled the transactions.
According to the prosecution’s indictment, two brothers from Gran Canaria conspired with individuals from Tenerife who have not been identified to obtain credit cards primarily from foreign citizens holidaying in the archipelago. They allegedly then simulated the purchase of products or services, requiring the use of point-of-sale terminals (POS).
The Public Ministry states that, to obtain the POS terminals, they needed to create the appearance of an economic activity that justified their delivery by banks or to have access to existing ones in the market.
POS Terminal Delivery
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To carry out their alleged plan, the brothers would have contacted the rest of the accused. Some allegedly proposed that they pretended to engage in an economic activity to receive the devices, while others already had their own businesses and allegedly agreed to participate in criminal activities in exchange for a commission.
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Allegedly involved in the scheme were taxi drivers, sellers of technological articles, and real estate agents. The defendants, as the prosecution claims, swiped credit cards through the terminals multiple times.
