Three alleged “money mules” have been acquitted by the Bruges Criminal Court in a case revolving around a phishing scam in which €14,250 was stolen from a 77-year-old man in Ostend.
On 31 May 2020, the victim and his wife received a fraudulent email from Argenta bank, followed by a call from someone pretending to be a bank employee.
The couple was tricked into providing their PIN codes, allowing the scammers to transfer €14,250 from their account.
The stolen funds were routed through the bank accounts of W.L., a 29-year-old from Zottegem; R.K., a 58-year-old from Ghent; and F.B., a 41-year-old from Brussels.
The sums funnelled through their accounts - €5,000, €4,750, and €4,500, respectively - were subsequently withdrawn in cash by the perpetrators, including in Amsterdam.
Investigations revealed that the three defendants had acted as money mules for the phishing scheme.
Typically, involvement in such cases results in charges of money laundering, but in this instance, the accused were only prosecuted for fraud.
The public prosecutor left the final decision to the judge, while the victim’s lawyer wanted them charged with money laundering or computer fraud.
During the trial,W.L.’s legal guardian stated that his client had shared his bank card and PIN without hesitation in various instances.
R.K. claimed her card and PIN had been lost, while F.B. admitted to being recruited through Snapchat, saying: “I was foolish, but I needed the money.”
Ultimately, the judge acquitted the three defendants. While acknowledging that the trio had allowed criminals access to their accounts, the ruling concluded that their cooperation had not been essential for the phishing operation to succeed.
Furthermore, the court noted that they were unaware of the specific offence they were aiding, and that the charges could not be reclassified as money laundering since this did not pertain to the same set of circumstances.
