The scam that tricked a businesswoman into transferring 100,000 euros to fake ANAF inspectors
A businesswoman from Alba Iulia fell victim to a well-designed scam, after several people posing as representatives of the National Tax Administration Agency and a bank convinced her to make several bank transfers. Under the pretext that her company has money to recover from the state, the swindlers led her to transfer over 100,000 euros to accounts controlled by them.
A businesswoman was called by fake ANAF inspectors PHOTO: Archive
According to a statement sent on Thursday, March 5, by the Alba County Police Inspectorate, the case highlights a new type of fraud that uses the identity of official institutions to gain the trust of the victims.
“The story of a 44-year-old woman from the municipality of Alba Iulia raises the alarm about a new type of fraud. Criminals use the identity of institutions such as ANAF or banking units to convince victims to transfer money to the accounts indicated by them”IPJ Alba representatives sent.
The woman was initially contacted by people who presented themselves as ANAF representatives. They told her that the company she manages would have to recover an amount of money paid to the state at the end of 2025. Next, the scammers explained that she would be contacted by a representative of a bank, who would help her complete the procedure for recovering the money.
Transfers made according to the instructions of the “bank”
Shortly after the discussion with the alleged ANAF inspector, the woman was called by another person, who presented himself as a representative of a banking unit and confirmed the information previously received.
“Later, the woman was contacted by an alleged representative of a banking unit, and all aspects discussed with the ANAF representative were confirmed. Next, the injured person followed the steps indicated by him and carried out several financial operations on the account of the company he manages, the damage created being more than 100,000 euros”according to the police statement.
The money was almost fully recovered
According to the Alba24 publication, after realizing that she was the victim of a scam, the woman immediately alerted the Police. Following the investigations carried out by the law enforcement officers, a large part of the money was recovered.
“Following the investigative-operative activities, the police officers of the Criminal Investigation Service managed to recover almost the entire lost amount”, the IPJ Alba representatives specified.
The police draw attention to the fact that such frauds are becoming more frequent and recommend caution in the case of calls or messages received from people claiming to represent official institutions.
“If you receive such a call, hang up immediately and verify information only through official channels! If you have been contacted or suffered harm, please notify us immediately”IPJ Alba representatives sent.
