Alex Trelinski
THREE people have been arrested in Mallorca over a pyramid scam that swindled victims out of at least half-a-million euros.
A British expat says he lost €310,000 according to a complaint he filed with a court.
Another victim is said to have invested €108,000 and got nothing back.
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The Ultima Hora newspaper reported that the Guardia Civil raided two addresses on Wednesday and detained a Swedish couple aged 64 and 52 in Son Espanyol.
A 67-year-old British man was also arrested in Santa Ponsa as part of the Guardia operation called ‘Frux Clearing’.
The Swedish woman was released after being interviewed, while the two men appeared before a judge on Thursday and were bailed as investigations continued.
The con involved the formation of a company with links to a private bank that had a registered office in The Gambia.
The firm had no licence to carry out financial investments on behalf of clients in Spain.
Victims were recruited at promotional events staged at golf courses and clubs on Mallorca to ensure that people with high incomes could be lured into promises of a high return on their investments.
Once they got hold of any money, it was transferred to countries that had limited fiscal monitoring before ending up in The Gambia.
Ultima Hora said that in 2021, one potential British investor was introduced to the Swedish head of the operation by a mutual friend on a golf course.
The ‘friend’ got paid a commission to find clients and told the Brit about the scheme that he claimed made him a lot of money.
After making the introduction, the Brit was convinced by them to pump in €250,000 with the promise of a big return within a year.
Not long later, the British victim invested an extra €60,000 but with the caveat that he could not cash in or make a withdrawal for two years.
He made up to 13 separate transfers to reach the promised amount- something he was asked to do to prevent banks flagging up any suspicious activity
Once the two years were up, the investor wanted to get his man to buy a home for a family member.
He was fobbed off with various excuses including the Ukraine war and a crash in the cryptocurrency market.
In the intervening period, the investment was moved around without his consent and he never got a penny back.
The victim’s lawyer has filed a complaint- separate from the Guardia probe- for fraud and document forgery.
The Swedish head of the plot is also said to be linked to an international scam uncovered in London where shell companies laundered money from organised crime.
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