The General Directorate of Internal Security Forces - Public Relations Division issued the following statement: "As a result of the continuous monitoring conducted by the Internal Security Forces on fraud operations targeting citizens in various Lebanese regions, information was obtained about unknown individuals contacting expatriates from foreign numbers, misleading them into believing that they could assist in transferring their money from abroad to Lebanon. The expatriate would deliver the amount they wished to transfer in the correct currency to a person present with them in the same foreign country, while their relatives in Lebanon would receive the monetary amount, only to later discover that it is counterfeit.
In light of this, the specialized units intensified their investigative and technical efforts to identify those involved in these operations. As a result of extensive inquiries and investigations, the information branch was able to uncover the individuals of the aforementioned gang, including: M.A. (born in 1991, Lebanese). On October 12, 2023, following careful surveillance, one of the patrols from the branch arrested him in Nabatieh. Upon searching his home, a quantity of counterfeit US dollars amounting to $70,000 along with a money counting machine, battery, license plates, a mobile phone, and various SIM cards were seized.
During the investigation, he admitted to the charges against him regarding his involvement with an international fraud network whose members are spread between Lebanon and some countries abroad. The individuals abroad carry out fraud operations targeting Lebanese expatriates, receiving large sums of genuine money under the pretext of transferring it to their relatives in Lebanon, while other members of the network in Lebanon, in a professional manner, deliver the agreed amount in counterfeit currency to the expatriates' families.
Legal measures were taken against the arrested individual, and he along with the seized items was referred to the relevant authorities, based on the instructions of the competent judiciary. Efforts continue to arrest other accomplices."
