Source: Hajrudin Hodzic via Alamy Stock Photo

NEWS BRIEF

Five suspects have been arrested in Belgium, accused of taking part in a sprawling phishing operation that committed cybercrimes on an industrial scale across Europe.

The group operated by setting up call centers in luxury Airbnbs and apartment rentals to contact victims and lure them into handing over banking information, which was then abused to steal millions. The cybercriminals used the ill-gotten gains to buy fancy watches, clothes, and nights at posh nightclubs, according to an announcement of the arrests by Dutch law enforcement.

Belgian police first discovered evidence of the cyber-fraud ring and traced its leadership back to Rotterdam. In coordination, law enforcement of both countries arrested three men and one woman, a 66-year-old who was released, but remains a suspect. A magistrate ruled the three men will remain in custody. A fifth suspect was arrested in Belgium at the request of Dutch authorities and will be extradited to the Netherlands to face charges.

Cybercriminals Can Expect "VIP Treatment," Police Warn

"Many victims in at least ten European countries were called by a so-called bank employee or an employee of a so-called anti-fraud team with the message that fraud had been committed with their bank account and that the [bank] employee could help them," Jacqueline Bonnes, public prosecutor of the Rotterdam Public Prosecution Service, said in a statement about the arrests. "Bank accounts were mercilessly plundered and in this way they managed to steal an estimated millions of euros."

The stolen money funded a high-end lifestyle for members of the cybercrime ring, who had very expensive tastes.

"While the victims were left in misery, they spent all the victims' money during parties in expensive clubs, dressed in designer clothes and expensive watches," Jan van der Linden, team leader of the Cybercrime Team Rotterdam, added in the statement about the arrests. "Or they rented cars and booked luxury holidays in Spain."

Van der Linden pointed out the accused criminals also liked to flex their extravagant lifestyle on social media.

"And then preferably with a photo that also included a celebrity from, for example, the music or football world, which increased their status," he added.

Another member of Dutch cybercrime law enforcement, Ruben van Well, said he would continue to hunt down these types of brazen criminals who take to social media to glorify their crimes, with plans for his own "VIP" treatment — "very important police treatment."