Fraudsters are so clever! Victims inexplicably get an extra loan account

A French mother's loan account went from one to two under the lure of scammers. It is reported that there are about hundreds of similar victims in France.

Two years ago, in Eure, Angelique, a 29-year-old mother, fell into the trap of a fake credit manager, according to Le Parisien.

Angelique said: "It bored me for months. I felt very bad. Until now, I've been asking myself why I was so stupid, so dumb. But these liars are very convincing. Now, I tell my story, and I hope my story will serve as an alarm to others."

In 2018, Angelique took out a loan of €22,000 with Domofinance Credit. A year later, in August 2019, she was called by a fake credit manager named Eric Watrin. The scammer, who said he worked for Sogenef, wanted Angelique to switch lending companies and promised to pay her 1.5 percent interest. The negotiations continued for several days.

The scammer called several times to try to convince Angelique. At first, I didn't want to do it," she said. Then, I discussed the matter with my husband and made a decision. The fake manager was very smart and he told us many lies. He was convinced that we could save money and we believed him. He sent me the relevant documents via email."

Throughout the operation, the scammer did not require any documentation from Angelique. He had all our documents, he knew the amount of my husband's salary," says Angelique. He had the address of my home, our electric bill. He assured that he would take care of everything and that he would reapply for a loan with Cetelem." This financial company transferred 22,000 euros to the Angeliges' account. The fake credit manager then contacted the couple and asked them to transfer 21,640 euros to him, which was the remaining amount of the couple's repayment.

It was a short-term account, often opened only 48 hours ago and never certified," Angelique said. I asked the bank why they opened such accounts, which are a breeding ground for fraudsters. I think the bank is also at fault, and I think that's sad."

Four months later, Angelique found out that she needed to pay back two loans. The scammer promised to follow up with her. Angelique says, "He told me it was just a matter of time, that everything would be taken care of after the holidays, and now everyone is on vacation."

In February, Angelique received a notice from Domofinance, in which the company reminded Angelique to make her payments on time. At this point, however, Angelique contacted the credit manager again and discovered that he had disappeared.

Angelique was on maternity leave and her husband was working normally. They had a baby and a 6-year-old girl to raise. Eventually, the couple, with the help of their attorney, had their loan cancelled by Cetelem because Cetelem lacked vigilance during the loan process and the company accepted the lender's electronic signature without meeting with the lender.