Twelve suspects have been arrested in Spain over an alleged money laundering scheme that exploited vulnerable Ukrainian women to open bank accounts used to move illicit profits.
The network was disrupted in an international operation led by Spanish authorities working closely with Ukrainian police, with support from Europol and INTERPOL, Europol announced on Thursday.
Eight people were arrested in Alicante and four in Valencia, and police identified 55 victims.
Officers carried out nine house searches in Spain — six in Alicante and three in Valencia — and eight more searches in Ukraine.
Police seized 88 mobile phones, 20 computers, 500 SIM cards, four vehicles and 22 “bots” — automated software tools — as part of the operation.
They also seized EUR 73,000 and USD 4,200 in cash and EUR 200,000 in cryptocurrency, while 153 bank accounts across 11 countries were frozen, identified or blocked.
Recruitment of women with temporary protection
The investigation ran for two years and culminated in a coordinated action day in June 2025 in Spain and Ukraine, Europol said.
Authorities believe the group, made up of Ukrainian nationals, first used the personal data of Spanish citizens to open bank accounts, but later recruited Ukrainian women who had been granted temporary protection in Spain, exploiting them to open accounts used to transfer illicit proceeds.
The victims were in extremely vulnerable situations in areas heavily impacted by the war in Ukraine and were under the control of the suspects, Spanish investigators said.
The women were sent to Spain, accompanied while bank accounts were opened, and returned to Ukraine shortly afterwards.
Using the accounts, suspects obtained credit cards that were linked to online gambling accounts, some registered with stolen Spanish identities and others in the victims’ names.
More than 3,000 stolen credit cards and over 5,000 stolen identities from 17 nationalities have been detected so far.
The criminal organisation used computer systems to automate large-scale betting, depositing more than EUR 2.7 million into betting accounts and withdrawing over EUR 4.7 million.
Authorities estimate the organisation made EUR 4.75 million in profit using the method.
The group also transferred government subsidies received by victims due to their refugee status, and some of the funds were invested in luxury real estate.
