Koblenz prosecutors charge nine in massive international credit card fraud case

The Public Prosecutor's Office in Koblenz has filed charges against nine suspects—eight men and one woman—as part of an international cybercrime and money laundering network. The group is accused of defrauding credit card holders worldwide through fake subscription services.

Between 2016 and 2021, the network allegedly used the credit card data of more than three million victims across 193 countries to sign up for over 18 million fraudulent subscriptions. These subscriptions were linked to non-existent dating and pornographic websites. To avoid detection, the perpetrators kept monthly charges low and used ambiguous transaction descriptions.

The estimated damage currently stands at more than 260 million euros, with an additional 750 million euros in planned criminal cash flows identified. The defendants, aged 33 to 57 and holding German or Canadian citizenship, include intermediaries, a self-described ‘Risk Manager,’ and former managing directors of payment service providers.