Woman's bank account emptied after she provided ID photo: 'There were barely 20 euros left'
The National Police have arrested a fraudster in Alicante who usurped the identity of up to 13 people to whom he had 'promised easy money'
David Maroto
Valencia
Friday, 1 August 2025, 11:36
With just one photo of a woman's DNI (Spanish ID card), a scammer was able to open nine online bank accounts and continuously defraud her. The National Police have now arrested the fraudster in the town of Petrer. The man is accused of scamming a total of 13 people throughout Spain.
The detainee is under investigation for the offences of fraud and identity theft. He had opened multiple bank accounts, without the consent of the 13 people whose names he used.
The investigation started after a woman filed a complaint and reported that she had been the victim of a scam carried out by an acquaintance of hers to whom she had ceded control of an account in exchange for a financial benefit.
The victim lost contact with this person at the end of 2024, disregarding this bank account and not giving importance to the fact that he had her details. From that date until February 2025, he opened nine more bank accounts in her name as he had a photograph of her DNI card.
The fraudster moved more than 23,000 euros between the accounts. By the time the police opened the investigation, there were barely 20 euros left. He had spent all of the rest in online gambling.
The woman was not the only victim. The police discovered that the same person had opened numerous bank accounts in the name of a total of 12 other people from different parts of Spain. When the police contacted these victims, most of them confessed that they had shared a photo of their DNI through a messaging platform with a person who had "promised easy money".
Online accounts
Having all the information from these people's DNIs, the suspect was able to open online bank accounts without their knowledge. He would then transfer money from one account to another to make it difficult for the police to trace the destination and origin of the swindled money.
The police managed to identify and arrest the suspect in the Alicante town of Petrer. The detainee has been handed over to the magistrate's court in Elda.
