Alex Trelinski
AN ELCHE soccer school scam has been busted by the Policia Nacional with victims duped by promises of professional club contracts and residency visas.
12 people of Spanish and Columbian nationalities have been arrested in Elche and Orihuela in Alicante province as well as the North African enclave of Ceuta.
50 victims- mainly from South America- aged between 16 and 21 years have so far been identified, with the con netting at least €100,000.
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The police operation branded ‘New Team’ is still active and more arrests have not been ruled out.
Those detained face charges of abusing the rights of foreign citizens; child abandonment: fraud: flouting workers rights: and belonging to a criminal gang.
The police got involved after an Elche charity was visited by a Columbian minor who was desperate for food and accommodation.
He had been recruited in his native country to come to Spain to supposedly play professional football.
Instead, he along with all the others that were conned, went through the same bad experience.
The victims had to pay their own fares to get to Spain and were charged €2,000 each by the scammers to cover their board and lodging.
All of the flats used to put them were unhealthy, overcrowded and badly maintained.
Gang members pretended to be managers of soccer teams and told them after just a few days that the money had run and out and demanded another payment.
With none of young players having any more cash, they were literally discarded by their so-called mentors.
The criminals had a network of ‘recruiters’ operating in South American countries and the Policia Nacional reported that many of their victims had ‘little or no interest in football’.
Two homes were searched during the police operation with numerous documents and electronic devices seized and several bank accounts blocked by court order.
