An advertisement from a car dealer in the Eferding district got the case rolling in October 2020. After an attempted leasing fraud when buying a car, the State Criminal Police Office started the investigation.
As it turned out, perpetrators of Serbian origin living in Vienna had created a sophisticated fraud system. According to their own statements, the investigators were amazed “to what extent, with what ruthlessness and on what scale” the organization acted.
Straw men recruited abroad
The gang of fraudsters recruited people from the socially disadvantaged milieu to act as lessees. These people were not only wanted in eastern Austria, but also in Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Bulgaria and Serbia. They were offered lucrative sums of money – for their personal circumstances – so that they could make their personal data available for fraud in Austria. Among them were numerous people who could neither read nor write.
The organization also financed the issuance of up-to-date personal documents, transport to Austria, temporary accommodation and the necessary expenses for attractive clothing. The persons were registered with the police in Austria, an account was opened and provided with forged wage confirmations. Equipped in this way, vehicles between 20,000 and 120,000 euros were bought and externally financed from various car dealerships in Germany.
The purchased cars were deregistered and resold after a few days without the knowledge of the financier and thus the owner. These processes were repeated until the fraud departments of the financial institutions got involved and refused further inquiries. From this point on, the person was sent back to their home country and usually cheated out of the promised salary.
As a second track, managing directors and straw men for bought-up companies were sought from the same social milieu. These companies were no longer operational and only pseudo-constructs. If necessary, balance sheets were falsified and thus active companies were feigned.
The perpetrators laundered the proceeds from the scams. They are therefore also accused of money laundering. They are also accused of massive financial crimes, abuse of social benefits and forgery of documents.
Over three million euros in damage
A total of 43 people were reported to the Vienna Public Prosecutor’s Office for serious commercial fraud in 111 cases and other related offences. According to the current status, the amount of damage is over three million euros.
26 cars could still be secured. The buyers of these vehicles, who now have to fight for their vehicles before the district courts, are also affected.
Eight people are currently in prison or have been sentenced to prison terms.
Source: Nachrichten
