This scam involves buying cars with forged Bank Drafts and then selling the cars on for cash.
An innocent driver is tricked into acting as a courier for the fraudster, delivering the cars and forged bank draft and collecting the cash.
The fraudster targets cars being sold on the Internet. He contacts the sellers, questions them about the car and agrees a price. He usually arranges to see the car on a Thursday or Friday. During what can be lengthy negotiations, he gets the seller to agree to accept a bank draft, he then phones before the agreed meeting, to explain he can’t come himself and is sending his driver. His driver meets the seller of the car, checks the car and hands over the bank draft. The bank draft is a counterfeit, but by the time the innocent seller discovers, the fraudster can’t be traced.
In the meantime the fraudster has advertised the car for sale on another site. The asking price is usually considerably lower than its value. His drivers’ meets the potential buyer with the car and collects the cash. At no point does the fraudster come face to face with the driver, the buyers or sellers of the cars.
We reconstruct the case of how one innocent driver was duped into working for the fraudster and feature a picture of an as yet unidentified intermediary partaking in the scam.
The identity is sought of the above male in connection with an ongoing fraud investigation in which vehicle are purchased through unsuspecting third parties with forged bank drafts. This individual has handed over a number of bank drafts and accepted cash in return.
He is described as male, mid 40’s, with a turn in his left eye, and has a strong Dublin accent. He travels by taxi to meet injured parties.
Gardaí at the Stolen Motor Vehicle Investigation Unit are investigating Telephone: 01 666 3320 / 25