Operation Against Romance Fraud Network Leads To Arrests In West Dublin

Operation Skein has targeted The 'Black Axe' crime network responsible romance fraud over a long period

Specialist detectives have carried out their latest arrest operation against the Black Axe crime network as part of a long running investigation into romance fraud.

Two suspected operatives aged in their 40s and 50s are currently detained at Clondalkin Garda.

According to the Irish Independent, it is all part of a wider probe named Operation Skein which is being led by the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau (GNECB) into worldwide frauds of hundreds of millions of euro.

After this search happened a forensic trawl on bank accounts linked to him established that a female OAP who is based in continental Europe had been lodging money into these accounts on almost a monthly basis.

The Garda’s fraud squad established that she had been swindled out of around €100,000 by the crime organisation.

The older suspect is being questioned about the laundering of nearly €750,000 in bank accounts linked to him over a four month period in 2022.

Both detained men are originally from abroad but have been living in Ireland for a number of years.

Smishing – a combination of the words “SMS” and “phishing” – is a scam where fraudsters use mobile phone text messages to trick you into opening a malicious attachment or link.

Typically, the text messages claim to come from a reputable organisation such as your bank, card issuer, a service provider such as your mobile phone company, or even a government department such as Revenue.

Gardaí said that there are a number of signs to look out for when it comes to online deceptions.

Romance scammers seek out individuals who are looking for love on dating apps but also target people on social media. Often, they will take advantage of people who may have been bereaved or who may have experienced a separation. However, anyone can be a target.

The GNECB in February raided the homes of 11 senior gang members, also known as the Neo Black Movement (NBM), in a separate operation.

Gardaí said that the Nigerian-linked group’s Irish operation has been linked to the theft and laundering of € 94 million since 2020.

Some 1,400 potential suspects have been identified to date, with 636 arrests.

More than 300 suspects have been charged with gangland offences and money laundering.

Merchandise produced to demonstrate gang affiliation including caps, medals and even ties were discovered in Garda raids in February as part of Operation Skein, in counties Sligo, Dublin, Galway, Limerick, Kilkenny, Kildare and Meath.