A criminal network accused of selling fake employment contracts to help migrants obtain residency and work permits in Spain has been dismantled by the Guardia Civil.
Investigators say the group charged foreign nationals between €4,500 and €10,500 per application and may have fraudulently processed more than 100 residency cases.
The operation, dubbed Lutasanol, resulted in the arrest of the alleged ringleader and the investigation of three other suspects.
They include two company administrators accused of providing a corporate front for the scheme and a labour consultant who allegedly helped prepare and submit the paperwork.
Although the network was primarily based in Almeria province, investigators say it recruited clients across southern Spain, including in Malaga, Granada, Huelva, Murcia and parts of Albacete.
According to the Guardia Civil, the organisation offered bogus job contracts to foreign nationals seeking to obtain or renew Spanish residency and work permits.
The contracts allegedly gave the appearance of genuine employment relationships, allowing applications to be submitted to the authorities as if the jobs actually existed.
Officers say they uncovered multiple cases in which workers had been registered with Spain’s Social Security system despite there being no real business activity to justify their employment.
The alleged fraud is estimated to have exceeded €100,000 and may also have enabled individuals to improperly access public benefits and welfare payments.
During a raid on what investigators described as the network’s operational headquarters, officers seized large quantities of documentation, copies of identity papers, suspected fake payslips, handwritten records linked to the operation and cash believed to have come from payments made by clients.
The Guardia Civil believes the organisation operated with a clear division of responsibilities, with recruiters finding potential clients, document specialists preparing applications and advisers helping give the scheme an appearance of legitimacy.
Investigators say the network exploited the vulnerability of migrants attempting to regularise their status in Spain, generating substantial profits through applications based on fictitious employment.
Alongside the alleged recruiter who was arrested, investigators also targeted the administrators of the company allegedly used by the network, who were located in Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Madrid, as well as a labour and accounting consultant based in Almería.
The investigation was carried out by the Judicial Police Unit of the Guardia Civil’s Almería command together with officers from El Ejido. Proceedings are being overseen by a court in El Ejido.
Read more Andalucia news at the Spanish Eye.
