A lucrative deal turns out to be a scam. A German fulfills a bizarre request and loses 60,000 euros. The suspected fraudster escapes.
Bolzano – Caution is advised when buying and selling goods via online platforms. This is particularly true for luxury items. A man from Germany who offered his sailing yacht for sale on the Internet has apparently fallen for a supposed buyer from Italy. What initially looked like a profitable trade turned out to be a fraud that continues to keep investigators on their toes to this day.
Man wants to sell his yacht in Italy and receives strange request: “Would you do me a big favor?”
The German seller advertised his yacht on an online marketplace in the spring, according to the daily newspaper Alto Adige reported. Soon an Italian came forward and expressed interest. The two men met on the Italian coast to inspect the boat. Everything is said to have gone smoothly; they both agreed on a sales price of 100,000 euros, it is said.
But then came an unusual request from the Italian that should have made the German suspicious. The Italian asked the German seller to exchange 200 euro notes worth 60,000 euros for 100 euro notes. “You would do me a big favor to exchange some of them for 100 euro notes,” the prospective buyer is said to have told the seller, according to the Italian daily.
German acts recklessly and falls victim to fraud in South Tyrol
Despite the strange request, the German agreed. They met at a hotel in Bolzano to complete the deal. The Italian handed over a sealed, transparent bag with what appeared to be 200 euro bills and then left the hotel under the pretext of counting the money outside.
But the man then got into a car and drove away. The German tried in vain to stop the car and could only see parts of the license plate. When the German opened the bag with the money, he found that only nine of the 200 euro bills were real, the rest were fakes.
The man from Germany then called the police. An investigation was initiated, but the investigation initially produced no results. The car was registered to an uninvolved woman and the hotel’s security cameras provided loud coverage Alto Adige no clear images of the scammer.
Suspect in fraud case sends alibi to Bolzano via lawyer
Weeks later, the victim contacted the police again. The German found the face of the suspected fraudster, an Italian from Rome who was already known to the police, on the Internet. Finally, the Roman was added to the investigation register as a suspect.
When the public prosecutor’s office in Bolzano informed the suspect about the end of the investigation against him, he presented an alibi: he was in the hospital at the time of the meeting due to a heart attack. The Italian’s lawyer is said to have even presented a medical certificate. Still, the prosecution raised its voice Alto Adige Charges against the alleged fraudster. Just a few months ago, South Tyrol was the focus of an international fraud scandal worth millions.
Caution is also advised when looking for a partner on the Internet. A woman lost 100,000 euros online in the spring.
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