The leader of a major international fraud gang was claiming Pandemic Unemployment Payments (PUP) from the State despite being locked up in jail awaiting his court outcome, the Irish Independent can reveal. He also pleaded guilty to one count of possessing a laptop specifically designed to make false cards. Gardaí said this week that data found on that laptop showed that he could have made up to €5m from his cloned credit card scam. During this time Almajanu was locked up in Cloverhill Prison in Dublin after his initial arrest by Pearse Street gardaí on February 14 last year. Gardaí are investigating if he was to be a “direct beneficiary” of the PUP fraud using his details or if his associates were to pocket the cash.

Source: Irish Independent February 05, 2021 02:26 UTC