The Guardia Civil have arrested a 54-year-old man in Tenerife who has been tampering with cash machines in various municipalities across the north of the island so that he could steal money from people’s accounts, particularly the elderly who didn’t know how to use the machines properly.
The fraudster has been operating since the end of 2020, allegedly tampering with ATMs at various bank branches to deceive targeted victims. When they were struggling to use the cash machine and enter their pin number, the ATM was automatically blocked, at which time the man suddenly appeared to casually offer to help, advising them that it was broken and to go to another branch.
In fact, the victims didn’t realise that their banking ‘session’ was still open, leaving the man to freely withdraw up to 1,400 euros a time when carrying out the scam, which the police believe he has done 15 times.
During the investigation, many steps were taken to identify and locate the scammer, having to carry out discreet surveillance and monitoring the various bank branches, since the accused used several different measures to avoid being identified, including disguises to change his appearance in order to go unnoticed and not attract anyone's attention.
The Guardia Civil finally caught the man from Icod de Los Vinos red-handed carrying out one of these acts after witnessing him approach an elderly lady telling her to use another machine. After arresting him, they searched his home finding 5,750 euros in cash plus several items of clothing that the surveillance team had photos of him wearing.
The detainee, along with the police report, has been placed at the disposal of the Investigating Court No. 2 of San Cristóbal de La Laguna awaiting trial.
