site.btaProsecutors in Plovdiv Disrupt Computer Fraud and Money Laundering Ring

Plovdiv, Southern Bulgaria, April 19 (BTA) - The Plovdiv
District Prosecution Office has broken a criminal operation for
money laundering related to computer fraud (phishing) outside
Bulgaria. This emerged at a news conference in Plovdiv on Monday
 given by District Prosecutor Roumen Popov, anti-organized crime
 unit chief Dimiter Alexandrov and supervising prosecutor Peter
Petrov.

Over a period of two years, the criminal operation withdrew or
rechannelled 1.2 million US dollars and 200,000 euro by using
computer fraud methods against companies in various countries,
including one in Hong Kong. After hacking the victims' bank
accounts, the group transferred the money to front men. The
financial flow sometimes went through several countries and the
final destination was China, Popov explained.

The prompt actions of Bulgarian law enforcers led to the
freezing of 1.75 million dollars and 1.4 million euro in bank
accounts before the money could be withdrawn or rechannelled.
The investigators learned that about 40 million euro was to be
remitted in three weeks. The criminal group chose their front
men from among people of low social status. Fifteen companies
were registered to the front men's names and accounts were set
up for them in two banks.

A 42-year-old man and a 62-year-old woman were arrested in
Bulgaria last Thursday and taken into 72-hour custody. They both
 have police records for past offences and are suspected of
having recruited front men for this scheme. Two other persons
are wanted internationally: a Lebanese, declared wanted by the
British authorities on a red notice for phishing and money
laundering, and a Danish national of Arab origin.

The arrested suspects are charged with money laundering through
computer fraud. In Bulgaria, they could face a prison term of 3
to 12 years and a fine of 20,000 to 200,000 leva on conviction.
NV/VE