Alex Trelinski
THREE scammers defrauded at least 15 people by taking deposits for bogus holiday properties in the Mar Menor area of Murcia.
The trio- who pocketed around €15,000- have been arrested by the Guardia Civil.
The fraudsters published ads on websites and social media outlets offering summer holiday rentals including photos of the supposed homes to add extra realism to the deception.
Customers were asked to pay deposits and rental insurance to secure their vacation booking.
Most of the victims were based in the Murcia region and if they asked to visit the rental property beforehand, they were palmed off with various excuses.
If they subsequently requested a refund of their deposit, the scammers told them they had cancelled for no good reason and refused to return their money.
The fraudsters were based in different districts of Murcia and were located by analysing their social media activity.
Their bank accounts were blocked by the Guardia Civil and all of the stolen money will be refunded to the hood-winked clients.
The Guardia operation is continuing to see if other people have been duped by the ruse.
READ MORE:
- Conman in holiday rental scam tricks unsuspecting customers in Mar Menor area of Spain
- Scammers rented out non-existent homes in Costa Blanca and Murcia areas of Spain
- Hundreds of people conned into paying €500 for bogus holiday rentals on the Costa Blanca in Spain
