Civil Guard Dismantle Pistachio Scammers
An international operation between the Spanish Civil Guard and the French Gendarmería Nacional has dismantled a gang selling falsely labelled ecologically grown pistachos nuts.
The investigation resulted in the arrest of 14 people in Ciudad Real, Madrid and Málaga who are believed to have made more than six million Euros from the scam.
The gang menbers face fraud, public health and consumer regulation infractions, money laundering as well as false documentation charges.
Operation Pevera, which began in 2019 under EUROPOL coordination was triggered by the detection of falsely labelled nuts in the markets and shops in both Spain and France.
It is believed the gangs were able to make mark ups of between 60% and 80% by falsely labelling the nuts.
The nuts are believed to have also been treated with chemicals to give the aspect of “naturally grown”.
EUROPOL is continuing with the investigation in France.