Man arrested following investigation into romance and phishing fraud

A SEARCH operation was today carried out in Dublin as part of an ongoing investigation into the laundering of the proceeds of romance and phishing frauds.

According to a Garda statement issued this evening, a search operation was carried out by Garda National Economic Crime Bureau personnel in Dublin on Tuesday morning, May 17.

A Garda spokesperson said: “Two searches took place in the Citywest and Finglas areas.

“Following the searches, a man, aged in his 40s, was arrested in Finglas for gangland offences, contrary to Section 72 Criminal Justice Act, 2006.

“He is currently detained under the provisions of Sec 50 Criminal Justice Act 2007 at Terenure Garda Station and he can be held for up to seven days.”

Banking documents, a laptop and a phone were also seized during the operation, according to gardai.

“To date, this investigation has established that a number of bank accounts were created under false names”, the Garda spokesperson said.

“It is believed that approximately €660,000 has been laundered through these accounts.

“The money is understood to have emanated from a romance fraud that was operating in Germany between October 2020 and February 2021.

“In one particular case, an elderly woman was allegedly defrauded out of €230,000.”