The Brussels Public Prosecutor's Office has requested prison sentences of four to five years for a group of people in the their twenties who defrauded and robbed several dozen elderly people.
The group of seven stole the elderly people's bank cards by posing as bank clerks or police officers and then used them to plunder their bank accounts.
A prison sentence of two years was also requested for a forty-something-year-old whose night shop was used to launder part of the loot.
The victims, all elderly women, the oldest of whom was 93, received a call on their landline, explaining that fraudulent transactions had been made on their bank accounts.
The caller managed to persuade the victim to provide the security codes by telephone, to cut the bank cards in two, without damaging the chip, to put them in an envelope, and finally to hand the envelope over to a person who would register with her.
While one suspect kept the victim on the line to maintain control, a second suspect went to the victim's home to receive the card.
Since the chip in the bank card was still intact, the suspects were then able to empty the victim's accounts.
Almost 3,000 targets
According to the Brussels Public Prosecutor's Office, the perpetrators tried to trick almost 3,000 elderly people in this way.
In most cases, they were unable to get their intended victim on the line, but they did succeed in their plan with a few dozen people.
In this way, they stole at least €44,000. The money was used for parties and purchases, but also withdrawn in cash.
