Two people have been arrested at Dublin Airport in relation to an investigation into global cyber fraud.
Sources indicated the Romanians were attempting to leave the country on a flight bound for Canada and are suspected of being connected to Irish-based money laundering activities.
In a statement on Friday evening, gardaí said the arrests followed an operation targeting a Romanian organised crime group involved in worldwide cyber fraud including invoice re-direct, phishing, vishing and money laundering.
“Vishing” is similar to phishing – the use of deception to extract personal, sensitive or confidential information from targets – but involves the use of a telephone service.
One of the two was a 34-year-old man who was arrested on foot of a European Arrest Warrant (EAW). His companion, a 22-year-old woman, was arrested on suspicion of theft and fraud offences.
Officers seized a sum of money and a number of debit and credit cards they believe were obtained through the opening of bank accounts using false identities. Encrypted phones and a laptop were also seized.
The female suspect was detained at Ballymun Garda station under the provisions of Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act. Gardaí said the male suspect was likely to appear in the High Court on Friday evening on foot of his warrant.
