On November 28, the Mossos d'Esquadra arrested two men who posed as operators or salespeople of electricity or gas companies for thefts, robberies with violence and scams in Barcelona. The perpetrators did not hesitate to intimidate victims who were vulnerable due to their age or used violence when they did not cooperate or discovered them.
The investigators were able to link a total of 14 events to the two authors, nine of which happened in the Sants-Montjuïc district, and the others in Nou Barris and Sant Andreu. The total amount swindled from the different victims is around 50,000 euros.
The investigation began last August after receiving a complaint from a woman who had been the victim of a theft and a scam. According to the woman, two men showed up at her home and posed as electricity salespeople. In a moment of carelessness, they took the opportunity to steal his cell phone SIM card and credit card. Immediately afterwards, they left the home and began making purchases and refunds worth 17,000 euros. In addition, they also made transfers through Bizum with the information they had obtained from the victim and her SIM card.
During the investigation, the agents detected that there were several reported incidents in Barcelona where the perpetrators had similar physical characteristics and followed the same 'modus operandi'. They obtained information from the victims, such as name, age and home address, and then selected elderly people. Then they went to the victims' homes and presented themselves as salespeople from an electricity or gas company who came to offer them discounts on their bill. Apparently, they did not raise suspicions and gained the trust of the victims, since their clothing was very correct and they used supporting documentation from different companies.
Once inside the home, and with the excuse of giving them a discount on the bill, they asked for their bank books or credit cards, as well as access to internet banking through their mobile phones. The perpetrators distracted the victim and changed his mobile SIM card. One of them would leave with her and begin making withdrawals at the nearest office. In some cases, the victim realized her deception and the perpetrators did not hesitate to intimidate her or use violence to achieve their goal.
On November 28, the Mossos carried out entries and searches at two homes in Gavà and Castelldefels, where the alleged perpetrators were located and arrested. During the search, cards, bank books and other documents of the victims were located. The detainees, aged 25 and 26, were handed over to the investigative court number 20 of Barcelona. They are accused of the crimes of fraud, theft and robbery with violence and intimidation.
