TWO people stole over €76,000 from a bank account belonging to a Costa Blanca woman by simply using her phone number.
The victim, 72, lives in Altea and went to the Guardia Civil when she realised most of her money had disappeared for no obvious reason.
A 22-year-old woman and a 33-year-old man have been charged with fraud and belonging to a criminal organisation.
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They were detained in the Madrid and Valencia areas and brought before a Benidorm judge.
Guardia investigations found that someone had impersonated the victim to transfer their phone number to another company.
They then requested a change of ownership which coincided with multiple fraudulent accesses to her bank account.
Once in control of the woman’s phone number, they accessed her digital banking and requested three debit cards linked to her account.
The arrested duo then made purchases and transfers using different identities, phone numbers, and addresses.
Their transactions included paying €26,200 for a high-end gold watch from an jewellery shop in Alicante.
Over €41,000 worth of electronic devices and video game consoles were bought from various businesses across Spain.
The fraudsters also spent €9,915 on an online gambling platform, and purchased five gold coins valued at €2,415.
The Guardia Civil identified up to 14 orders for tech gear which was collected by different people in addition to multiple bank transfers between those involved.
The two detainees appeared before a Benidorm court and were bailed.
The investigation remains active to see if there have been other victims of fraud.
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