The criminal court in Bobigny has just started the trial of eight people, six men and two women aged between 42 and 62, accused of organizing a major fraud between 2013 and 2014.
The charges include fraud, money laundering and harboring organized criminals. More than twenty companies filed civil lawsuits, testifying to the scale of the offenses committed.
Fraud with the purchase of several cars
At the center of this scam are two people believed to be the masterminds of the operation: Eric Robik, known for fatally beating Israeli Lee Zeitouni in Tel Aviv in 2011 before fleeing, and his accomplice Claude Hayat. Two men with previous convictions for VAT fraud found themselves at the center of a complex new case that caused diplomatic chaos at the time of the crash.
Eight defendants with various professions – from a salesman to an interior designer and a sports teacher – admitted to various degrees of involvement in the fraud during the investigation. At least a hundred victims have been identified in this case with various ramifications.
This is fraud purchase of cars on credit through shell companies, which is confirmed by false accounting. These vehicles were then sold at unbeatable prices to unscrupulous garages.
Almost one million euros were collected
The funds received in this way were then transferred to international destinations such as Poland, China or Israel. The trick then was to repatriate the money in cash in exchange for commissions paid to various middlemen.
This scam has also been used as part of a scam involving fake do-it-yourself websites listed in the yellow pages.
In addition to the promise of online visibility, these artisans were offered access to a client portfolio for €5,000. Unfortunately, the contracts would never be fulfilled, resulting in losses estimated at over 200,000 euros for around fifty defrauded companies, in addition to the money received from the car “buy-resell” process. In general, the scam would have allowed the accused to embezzle almost a million euros.
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Source: Auto Plus
Robert is an experienced journalist who has been covering the automobile industry for over a decade. He has a deep understanding of the latest technologies and trends in the industry and is known for his thorough and in-depth reporting.