Alex Trelinski
SEVEN members of a gang who sold fake COVID-19 passports to anti-vaxxers have been arrested by the Policia Nacional in Spain.
The Spanish branch of a French-led operation reeled in around 1,600 unvaccinated customers.
They illegally ended up on Spain’s National Vaccination Registry with the assistance of health workers.
Six of the arrests have been in Madrid along with one detention in Barcelona.
They face forgery and public health crime charges including the possible theft of passwords to access the National Registry.
The Policia Nacional say they also plan to investigate the 1,600 clients.
They were attracted by adverts placed on anti-vaccination social media sites distributed via an instant messaging phone app.
A series of tariffs were created by the gang.
In most cases, payments were made via cryptocurrencies or transfers to bank accounts outside Spain that made police tracking more difficult.
QR codes with the bogus vaccination schedule were then sent to buyers within a couple of days.
The Policia Nacional’s investigation remains open with further arrests not being ruled out.
They have passed on all of their findings to their French counterparts.
READ MORE:
- Fake COVID passports on sale in Spain
- Police stop anti-vaxxers pestering parents over COVID-19 jabs at Valencia area school in Spain
- Anti-vaxxers scammed in Spain:”I paid €200 for a fake COVID certificate and it never arrived”
