A 44-year-old man went on trial on September 8 at the Judicial Court of Leiria for 36 qualified fraud cases of the scheme known as "Hello dad, hello mom," one of them in attempted form. The Public Ministry attributes to him actions that caused damages of 67,560.28 euros to nearly 40 people across the country. The defendant, who is in preventive detention, chose not to make a statement during the session, which continued with the hearing of witnesses.
The man lived in Albufeira with his wife and two minor children in a house with a monthly rent of five thousand euros, developing no declared professional activity. According to the indictment, he spent most of the day inside rented vehicles, traveling to various locations from where he sent WhatsApp messages, pretending to be the victims' son or daughter to request money through bank transfers or ATM payments.
Between February 20 and April 29, 2024, the defendant activated 37 SIM cards on his phone to create WhatsApp accounts from which he practiced the frauds. The amounts of the frauds ranged between 2.50 euros and 6,940.95 euros, most of the time close to a thousand euros. The indictment considers that the man sustained his lifestyle through deceiving others, obtaining illegitimate enrichment and using the amounts also for investments in crypto assets to prevent tracking of the money.
The suspect was arrested on December 12, 2024 by the Judicial Police, who initially pointed to estimated patrimonial damages of several hundred thousand euros and a number of victims that could reach hundreds. The investigation focused on suspicions of criminal association, money laundering, and qualified fraud.
