Police seized more than 100 servers in an investment fraud operation on November 3, 2026, Eurojust said. German police said the raids spanned six countries. They targeted a network thought to supply fake trading sites.
Europol said the scheme may have reached victims in at least 50 countries. It put the estimated losses above €4 million. That does not mean police have confirmed losses in each of those countries.
Investment fraud inquiry targets a supplier
Eurojust said police traced the sites to a firm based in Cyprus and Israel. The firm is suspected of giving crime groups the tools for investment fraud. Its suspected clients ran call centers in Albania, Kosovo and North Macedonia, Eurojust said.
Eurojust gave the following figures for the raids. It said the arrests were for transfer to Germany through surrender or extradition proceedings.
| Measure | Reported result |
|---|---|
| Suspects arrested | 7 |
| Locations searched | 17 |
| Servers seized | More than 100 |
Source: Eurojust
Data as of: 2026-11-03
The figures cover the November 3 operation, not earlier raids.
German police and prosecutors said the raids included sites in Cyprus and Israel. They also took fake trading websites offline, their joint statement said.
How the platforms drew people in
Europol said false online ads led people to the sites. The operators offered rapid gains from trading stocks, currencies or cryptocurrency. The ads also gathered personal data to sell to groups running call centers, Europol said.
After small first payments, users saw fake gains in their accounts, Europol said. Supposed brokers used those gains to press for more money. But when users tried to get their money back, the supposed brokers stalled. They then cut contact, Europol said.
Earlier raids and the next legal steps
German police said a couple near Kiel filed the complaint that started the investment fraud case. They carried out earlier raids in September 2022 and May 2025. Clues from the second set of raids pointed to the suspected supplier, their statement said.
Three suspects from earlier raids later went to prison in Germany, the statement said. Their terms ranged from three to five years. Those terms do not concern the seven suspects held in the latest raids.
In Cyprus, KNEWS said three women went before the Limassol District Court over extradition to Germany. The court then put off the case and freed them under conditions, the outlet said. German police said they would now examine the digital evidence seized in the raids.
Sources: Eurojust, Europol, German police via Polizeimeldungen24, KNEWS
