The Guardia Civil has arrested 19 people residing in the province of A Coruña, in mainland Spain, for their involvement in a criminal organisation that extorted victims, including some in the Canary Islands, after they accessed adult content websites.
The operation, named "Operation Mamol TF," has uncovered more than 300 victims who were defrauded of a total of €500,000.
The investigation began over a year ago following complaints filed by victims with the Guardia Civil in Tenerife. According to the reports, victims started receiving serious threats via Whatsapp after entering their personal details, including phone numbers, on adult content websites.
The threats were accompanied by videos showing physical assaults on people, in which the extortionists brandished firearms and weapons, demanding payments to prevent them from suffering similar attacks.
Guardia Civil officers explained that this type of scam is known as the "hitman scam", where criminals post fake adverts on adult service websites. Once a victim engages with the service, they receive threats from an alleged hitman who demands payment to prevent harm.
Out of fear, some victims comply with the demands, but the extortionists continue to coerce them into paying more money.
Chilling Threats Captured on Video
In one of the cases under investigation, a video showed an extortionist directly threatening a victim. In the recording, a man with a foreign accent is seen loading a firearm while warning the victim:
"We have been informed that you have refused to pay the fine. You have been contacted via WhatsApp to prevent this from escalating further. Avoid conflict for yourself and your family. The worst thing you could have done was block us. Now, we will take action. Mediation was attempted, but it was unsuccessful with you. I am sending you this video since you refuse to answer calls or messages. Let me just tell you (while swinging the loaded weapon in front of the camera), we will settle this on the street, and we will meet face to face very soon. Be alert, because we will be too."
Another video supplied by the Ministerio del Interior, although without any audio, clearly shows two people intimidatingly displaying long-barrel firearms while dressed in tactical gear.
Extensive Criminal Operations and Money Transfers
Through forensic analysis, document reviews, and tracking of terminals and phone lines, investigators determined that the fraudsters had carried out over 370 criminal acts using this modus operandi, managing to defraud a total of €500,000 of which €180,000 was transferred to the Dominican Republic via various financial services companies.
The judicial authority has ordered the provisional imprisonment of three of the detainees.
The operation was conducted by the Computer and Technological Crime Investigation Teams (EDITE) from the Judicial Police Units of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and A Coruña, under the coordination of Investigative Court No. 3 of A Coruña and the Cybercrime Division of the Provincial Prosecutor's Office.
