John Culatto
POLICE have seized accounts and property worth about €1.7 million from a Malaga agency that provided fake residency documents to Chinese nationals.
National Police arrested 15 people across Spain for being part of the scam, nine of them in the city of Malaga and four in Torremolinos.
The two other detainees were based in Madrid and Leon respectively.
They were charged with suspected crimes against foreigners, belonging to a criminal organization, false documentation and money laundering.
Police investigations revealed that various Chinese residents had carried out their local registration through the group’s office in the city of Malaga.
The criminal group would provide fake local registrations and Social Security numbers so the Chinese could take out their Spanish residency permits.
They would carry out this process using false documents from China itself, police explained.
The group would provide fake notary approved documents claiming the victims had connections with alleged family members.
Investigators found that many of the scam’s victims did not even live in Malaga but travelled there to collect their falsified documents.
The criminal group owned eight buildings worth €1.6 million.
Apart from freezing €35,000 in bank accounts, police found €47,000, $17,000 and ¥4,120 in cash at two Torremolinos homes.
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