Spanish police, with the support of Europol and Interpol, have arrested 12 members of a criminal group involved in laundering €4.75 million through unnamed iGaming sites using Ukrainian refugees.
The group exploited Ukrainian women for two years, recruiting them from conflict zones and forcing them to open bank accounts linked to accounts on these iGaming sites. Some accounts were registered using stolen personal data of Spanish citizens.
Automated bots were used to place thousands of low-odds bets to legitimize the funds. The group also misappropriated government subsidies that the refugees received as temporarily protected persons in Spain. A total of €2.7 million was deposited into accounts, while €4.7 million was withdrawn. Part of the funds was invested in luxury real estate across Europe.
The operation took place in June 2025 in Alicante and Valencia. Investigators identified 55 victims and uncovered over 3,000 stolen credit cards and more than 5,000 stolen personal data records from citizens of 17 nationalities. Ukrainian police also conducted 8 searches as part of the same operation.
During the searches, Spanish police seized 22 bots, 88 phones, 20 computers, 500 SIM cards, 4 vehicles, €73,000 and $4,200 in cash, as well as €200,000 in cryptocurrency. A total of 153 bank accounts have been frozen across 11 countries in connection with the case.