Man arrested in Gran Canaria for €80,000 online food-sales scam
A man has been arrested in Gran Canaria for scamming an online food-sales platform out of nearly €80,000 by pretending to run a legitimate food business. According to the National Police, he faces charges of fraud, falsifying commercial documents, and identity theft. The platform involved reported losses totalling €79,781.
The case began when the affected company filed a complaint with Court of Instruction No. 5 in Barcelona, where it is registered for tax purposes. The company had detected a fake business operating on its platform and taking advantage of its compensation system.
Police say the man, based in Telde, who already has a record for similar crimes, created a non-existent shop on the platform and impersonated a business owner. He then allegedly set up several fake customer accounts and placed orders with his own fictional shop, massively inflating the prices of everyday items.
The orders were marked as “ready for pickup”, but the payments were always declined due to insufficient funds. This triggered automatic compensation payments from the platform, money that went straight to the scammer.
To avoid being caught, he set all orders as “collection only”, meaning no delivery drivers would attempt to visit the non-existent premises.
After gathering enough evidence, officers located and arrested the suspect on 12th February. Cash was seized during the operation, his bank accounts were frozen, and he has since been placed before the relevant judicial authority for sentencing.
Share:
