Phishing fraud in Gipuzkoa prescribed after 16 years: accused located in Lima
The Provincial Court of Gipuzkoa declared the criminal liability extinguished of a Peruvian citizen accused of collaborating in computer fraud in 2010. He was located in Lima by Interpol in April 2026, but the crime had already prescribed.
Phishing fraud case in Gipuzkoa prescribed after 16 years despite location of accused in Peru
Google News ES — Crime (es) reports that the Provincial Court of Gipuzkoa has declared extinguished the criminal liability of a Peruvian citizen accused of participating in computer fraud through phishing committed in 2010, after the proceedings were prolonged for sixteen years and Spain formally requested his extradition from Peru.
The facts date back to 5 March 2010, when unidentified persons accessed the internet banking data of the representative of an installation company in Gipuzkoa through phishing. The perpetrators transferred €2,930 from the victim's account at BBVA, bypassing the bank's anti-fraud filters.
The amount was deposited into a bank account in the name of the Peruvian citizen, who had allegedly made that account available to the perpetrators of the fraud. According to the prosecution, once the funds were received, he withdrew them and sent them to Poland via Western Union, providing the recipients with the code necessary to collect them without identification. For this service, he would have retained 5% of the transferred amount, approximately €146.50.
The Public Prosecutor's Office considered that the facts could constitute a crime of receiving stolen goods in the form of money laundering, punishable by up to six years in prison, and alternatively raised a continued computer fraud offence.
Declared in absentia in 2014
The case proceeded to the opening of oral proceedings in March 2013, but the accused could not be located. In January 2014 his arrest was ordered and, as he was not found following the corresponding requirements, he was declared in absentia on 3 February 2014, leaving the proceedings paralysed.
In October 2019, the National Police informed the court that the accused could be found in Peru. The Court then issued a European and international arrest warrant and, in January 2020, agreed to propose to the Spanish Government that it formally request his extradition.
The extradition process encountered various obstacles. The Peruvian authorities requested additional information about the facts and the evidence of the suspect's participation, and also required that Spain justify why criminal proceedings had not prescribed.
In an order dated 18 April 2023, the Provincial Court held that the crime had not yet prescribed, arguing that proceedings were again directed against the accused in 2019, which interrupted the ten-year prescription period. The Chamber again sent the necessary documentation to the Peruvian authorities, including Spanish rules on prescription.
Located by Interpol in Lima in April 2026
The outcome came on 14 April 2026, when Interpol reported that the accused had been located and detained in Lima. The Peruvian authorities authorised his extradition and the Third Court of Preparatory Investigation of Huaral issued a ruling to that effect.
However, the procedural situation had already changed by that point. After reviewing the case again, the Provincial Court of Gipuzkoa, with the favourable opinion of the Public Prosecutor's Office, concluded that criminal liability was extinguished. In an order dated 21 May 2026, the First Chamber determined that more than ten years had elapsed since the provisional dismissal and the declaration in absentia of February 2014, the period applicable to the money laundering offence charged.
The Chamber declared the criminal liability of the accused prescribed and ordered the cancellation of pending arrest warrants. The magistrates also directed that the aggrieved parties — amongst them BBVA and the account holder — be informed of the termination of the criminal case, with information on the possibility of exercising any civil actions that might be applicable.
Source: Google News ES — Crime (es)