[wilnj]

Just an example of how much damage one person can do and there’s thousands like them. Now scale this up to organized crime syndicates and probably even some state operated programs.

This is in Portugal.

MAN ARRESTED IN BRAGA SUSPECTED OF INVOLVEMENT IN THE “HELLO MUM, HELLO DAD” SCHEME AND MONEY LAUNDERING

TOTAL OF 15,111 SIM CARDS SEIZED!

The GNR (National Republican Guard) seized from the suspect 15,111 SIM cards from a national operator, 20 bank cards, 19 pen drives, 10 computers, five mobile phones and five hard drives.

A 26-year-old man was arrested on Wednesday in Braga, suspected of being part of a "Hello Mom, Hello Dad" scam and money laundering scheme. This information was revealed on Saturday by the GNR (National Republican Guard) in a statement sent to newsrooms.

The arrest took place as part of the dismantling, by the Albufeira Territorial Sub-detachment of the GNR (National Republican Guard), of "a criminal network dedicated to the practice of aggravated fraud and money laundering, having executed an arrest warrant, which resulted in the arrest in flagrante delicto of a 26-year-old man, in the city of Braga," describes the Guard.

The operation included two house searches in the municipalities of Gondomar and Braga, which allowed for the seizure of two devices with 128 'slots' intended for mass communications, used in the scam known as "Hello Mom, Hello Dad," as well as in other crimes committed through the Telegram platform. The devices were fully operational at the time of the police intervention," the statement also reads.

According to the GNR (National Republican Guard), 15,111 SIM cards from a national operator, 20 bank cards, 19 pen drives, 10 computers, five mobile phones and five hard drives were also seized.

The military also identified "around ten cryptocurrency wallets, used for the movement of capital originating from criminal activity," the statement continued.

The detainee, who appeared before the Portimão Judicial Court, was subjected to the coercive measure of weekly periodic appearances at the police station in his area of residence.

COMMENT
This is one of the most prolific scams operating in recent years, and the fact that over 15,000 SIM cards were seized gives some idea of the scale of the operation. Excellent work by the GNR – WELL DONE