Female remains in custody after fraud arrest

The woman was arrested in Monaghan on February 25 is currently being detained at Monaghan Garda station under Section 50 of the Criminal Justice Act, 2007.

A female is still in custody following her arrest yesterday (Thursday) as part of an ongoing investigation into international BEC/Invoice re-direct fraud being committed from Ireland.

The woman, aged in her early 40s, is the 11th person arrested to date as part of 'Operation SKEIN', which is also investigating the laundering of the proceeds of crime through Irish bank accounts.

To date, this investigation has identified that over €6,000,000 has been stolen worldwide with about €5,000,000 laundered through accounts in Ireland.

Over 90 suspects have been identified throughout the country, and Gardaí are liaising with Europol and Eurojust and police forces in other countries as part of the investigation.

Part of the ongoing investigation focuses on an organised crime gang that has managed to launder over €3,500,000 through a network of bank accounts set up by Italian nationals, Romanian nationals and others.

The woman was arrested in Monaghan on February 25 is currently being detained at Monaghan Garda station under Section 50 of the Criminal Justice Act, 2007.

A spokesperson for the force said that “investigations are ongoing” at the present time.

Earlier this month Gardaí attached to the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau raided a premises in south Dublin as part of Operation SKEIN.

At the location a large amount of suspected stolen property was recovered.

The property seized is believed to have been purchased via the proceeds of Business Email Compromise (BEC)/Invoice Re-Direct Frauds, which occurred in Asia during December 2020.

The purchases were made in Dublin over the Christmas period in 2020.

Following these searches, two people, a man and a woman, both aged 37 years, were arrested under gangland legislation. They were later released without charge and a file is being prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

In early December 2020, gardaí carried out three searches in the Dublin 2 and Dublin 8 areas and arrested three men, all in their 20s.

In October 2020, Gardaí investigating invoice redirection fraud carried out searches in Dundalk, Tralee and Dublin and made further arrests.

Several people are currently before the courts on charges linked to the ongoing investigation.