Two women have been arrested on suspicion of fraud involving online credit advertisements targeting people with poor credit history, the Regional Directorate of the Ministry of Interior in Stara Zagora announced. The arrests are the result of a large-scale police operation, deployed simultaneously in several cities and villages – Sofia, Kyustendil, Burgas and the village of Rumyantsevo in Lovech region. The operation involved officers from various units of the National Police, including the "Fraud" sector in the General Directorate "National Police" and officers from the regional directorates in Stara Zagora, Lovech, Kyustendil and Burgas. The investigation is under the supervision of the Regional Prosecutor's Office – Stara Zagora.
The operation revealed a complex mechanism used by the two detained women – one 33 years old from Kyustendil and the other 68 years old from Blagoevgrad. According to the data, the women posted advertisements on social media, promising loans to people with a negative credit history. When potential victims showed interest, communication began in a messaging application and subsequently moved to phone calls. The suspects misled the loan applicants, claiming they would receive the loans if they paid a certain percentage of the amount in advance as an "approval fee" through a money transfer office. Immediately after receiving the sums in question, communication with the victims ceased.
During the joint actions of the police, urgent measures were taken, including searches of the two women, carried out in accordance with the Code of Criminal Procedure. Searches and seizures were carried out at three addresses – in Kyustendil, Burgas and the village of Rumyantsevo. A significant number of pieces of evidence were seized from the search locations, including SIM cards, mobile phones, plastic cards, notes, notebooks and other items related to the criminal activity. Witnesses have been questioned in connection with the case. The two women have been detained for a period of up to 24 hours within the framework of the Law on the Ministry of Interior.
The investigation is ongoing, seeking evidence of a possible link between the detainees and other similar frauds throughout the country. At the moment, the collected data indicate that over 30 people have been affected by this criminal activity.