The clock is ticking for fraudsters: names of suspects to be published online
The police in the Netherlands and Belgium have arrested six suspects in connection with international investment fraud. In addition to tracking down and prosecuting suspects, the Netherlands Police want suspects to stop their criminal activities and discourage potential new perpetrators. For this reason, the Operation Sunflower website was launched. Read on to discover how the Netherlands Police apply perpetrator prevention tactics.
On the website https://www.operation-sunflower.com/ around 700 pseudonyms of so-called account managers have been published. A countdown clock shows the remaining time until the moment their real names will be published, which for now are only displayed in anonymised form. The Dutch suspects have already been arrested. The details of the other identified suspects have been shared with various countries with the help of Europol, so they can be prosecuted as well.
The account managers have been informed of the existence of the Operation Sunflower website by letter or email. The website offers suspects and witnesses the option to share information with the investigation team.
Online recruitment for fraud
The investigation revealed that there are online groups whose objective it is to recruit persons willing to earn money by defrauding people. The Netherlands Police have posted warning messages in these groups to discourage potential new perpetrators and to show that we actively investigate online fraud – including investment fraud – and track down suspects.
Investigation into international investment fraud
In May and July, the Netherlands Police dealt a firm blow in the fight against investment fraud. A man travelling from Dubai to Poland was arrested. He is suspected of playing a major and indispensable role in a criminal organisation that employed over 700 people. They worked together to defraud hundreds of victims every day using professional and ruthless methods. It is estimated that this organisation stole over 100 million euro each month across various countries. Read the full article about this investigation.