Nine-million-euro conmen on trial

The trial begins today in Ciudad Real against two men accused of defrauding a bank of almost nine million euro.

The Provincial Court of Ciudad Real will hear how the two people allegedly defrauded a banking entity of almost nine million euro after it anticipated the payment of several false invoices to the group of companies they managed, causing damage of more than 30 million euro to the bank.

According to the Prosecutor’s Office document, the two defendants used the three companies they managed to present false invoices to the financial institution, reaching a total of 14 invoices that the banking entity advanced without them subsequently returning the anticipated amount.

The defendants “discounted invoices, taking advantage of the trust generated with the bank as clients, and, faced with an unfavourable economic situation of the group of companies, between 2009 and 2012, they presented a series of invoices issued by the aforementioned companies for bank discount, charged to other companies and that were supposedly due to operations carried out with them, but in reality non-existent”, as stated in the indictment.

In this way, the defendants achieved the discount of the amounts that appeared in the aforementioned invoices and the payment of their amount into the corresponding accounts designated for this purpose, with the consequent financial loss for the banking entity.

For all this, the Prosecutor’s Office requests eight years in prison for them for a continuous crime of document falsification and fraud, and a fine of twelve months with a daily fee of 40 euro. Likewise, through civil liability, the Prosecutor’s Office requests the defendants to pay joint compensation to the banking entity of 30 million euro for the damages caused.