Forged documents sold on Telegram: couple arrested in Béziers
Forgers operating from Hérault were selling falsified documents via an encrypted messaging service.
Forged documents sold on Telegram: couple arrested in Béziers
For 350 euros, it was possible to obtain a counterfeit French identity card. The document was no crude imitation: a couple living in Hérault had been selling their products for months from their home in Béziers, using Telegram as a storefront.
Investigators from the OLTIM, the office specialised in combating illicit migrant trafficking, identified the sales channel. Their cyber team traced the digital trail to the two suspects. On 16 June, a police operation took place at their flat. The two individuals were held in provisional detention before being brought before a judge. The authorities subsequently disclosed the pricing structure applied on the channel.
Details of the case were reported by Siècle Digital. In addition to identity cards, the forgers were offering counterfeit driving licences for 300 euros. Other illegal services were also mentioned, though their exact content was not revealed.
The choice of Telegram was not random. The end-to-end encryption of conversations and the absence of active monitoring made it favourable terrain for illicit transactions. Customers entered into direct contact with sellers in private exchanges, away from any interception.
Other networks of the same type were dismantled in early 2026 by the OLTIM and Customs services. These networks required payment in cryptocurrency, thus leaving no banking trace. A Paris newspaper had already exposed this method in a previous investigation.
The mechanism reproduces itself identically: a public channel serves as a call for proposals, a secure conversation allows the deal to be concluded, payment takes place covertly, and the forged document is subsequently sent by post or delivered directly.
Possessing a false official document exposes one to a prison sentence of three years and a fine of 45,000 euros. Fraud in a driving test is also punished by an identical sentence and a financial penalty of 9,000 euros.
The effectiveness of these punishments, however, depends on the buyers being found, which proves difficult when exchanges are protected by encryption and payments go through digital currencies.
Source: Google News MA — Crime (fr)