An Israeli
businessman already known to authorities was arrested last week at Morocco’s Casablanca
airport after landing from a family vacation in Dubai, caught in an
international dragnet targeting alleged forex fraud operations that reportedly
bilked German investors out of tens of millions of euros.
Israeli Businessman
Arrested in Morocco on Forex Fraud Charges
The arrest
followed an Interpol warrant issued at Germany’s request, part of what appears
to be a broader German crackdown on Israeli-linked forex scams that have
targeted European investors. The businessman, whose name hasn’t been disclosed,
now faces likely extradition to Germany, where prosecutors claim they’ve built a
solid case against him.
“He
was shocked when they presented him with the international warrant issued
against him by Interpol,” a Moroccan source involved in the arrest told
Israeli media outlet Mako. “They worked on his case for several years and
waited for the moment he left Dubai to close it on him.”
Family Vacation Turns Into
International Incident
The
businessman had been vacationing in Dubai with his two young children when he
decided to travel through Morocco. Relatives picked up his youths while
their father was taken into custody for questioning in what the Moroccan source
quoted by Mako described as a well-coordinated operation.
German
authorities allegedly spent years building their case, waiting for the right
moment to act. “The Germans brought a ready-made extradition case, closed
on him from all sides,” the source said, predicting extradition could
happen within days.
Alleged Call Center
Operations Across Europe
According
to the allegations, the businessman rented large office complexes in central
Israel and several Eastern European cities about three years ago. There, dozens
of employees allegedly posed as legitimate investment company representatives,
targeting German citizens looking to invest their savings in foreign exchange
markets.
The
operation reportedly followed a familiar pattern seen in other Israeli-linked
forex cases – victims were convinced to invest money they believed would be
traded professionally, only to discover later that their funds had vanished.
Israeli
police unit Lahav 433 had opened its own investigation into the businessman and
repeatedly sought court orders to freeze assets worth tens of millions of
shekels, including a villa in Herzliya valued at approximately 25 million
shekels ($7.5 million). However, Israeli investigators couldn’t gather enough
evidence to file formal charges.
German Prosecutors Take
the Lead
German law
enforcement appears to have succeeded where their Israeli counterparts
struggled. A police source told Mako that German authorities only issue
international arrest warrants when they have substantial evidence.
“When
the Germans issue an international arrest warrant, it only happens after they
have solid evidence. They won’t make a fool of themselves,” the officer
said. “Quite a few Israelis were involved in forex scams in Germany and
most of them were extradited, sentenced to long years in prison and paid
financial compensation to the victims.”
The
businessman is currently being held at a detention facility in Rabat, Morocco’s
capital, where he’s expected to contest his extradition to Germany. Moroccan
authorities plan to coordinate with Israeli police in the coming days to gather
additional evidence and documentation related to the case.
This article was written by Damian Chmiel at www.financemagnates.com.
