Romanian phantom thief snatched expensive watches: The "Rip-Deal" method and the theft of 243,400 euros in an Athens hotel

Police officers handcuffed a 43-year-old Romanian, a member of a criminal organization, who committed thefts of luxury watches and jewelry in various European countries using the "Rip-Deal" method.

An investigation was conducted by the Property Crimes Department, the Prosecution of Crimes against Life and Property, and the Organized Crime Directorate, while after the relevant exchange of information with International Law Enforcement Authorities, it was established that a mobile criminal group had been operating since at least the summer of 2023, the members of which had been stealing luxury watches and jewelry.

The theft of 243,400 euros in a hotel in AthensIn particular, it was found that members of the organization have committed thefts using the above method in various European countries, including Greece, and specifically in August 2023 in a hotel in Athens, with the total monetary value of the stolen items amounting to 243,400 euros.

The action of the phantom Romanian and the members of the gangThe above 43-year-old is accused, among others, in this case, as he is allegedly involved in committing the said theft, which was carried out using the "Rip-Deal" method, while his full details were verified after appropriate use of data and exchange of information with Europol and Interpol.

Regarding the organization’s methodology, it emerged that its members initially identified the items they were interested in on specialized websites and then approached the sellers in an attempt to gain their trust. In fact, to make themselves even more convincing to their potential victims, they appeared as businessmen with high social and professional “status”.

They then arranged a face-to-face meeting in order to inspect the items for sale, in central hotels of the selected city. There, during the process of displaying the luxury items, the “appraiser-buyer” would use various pretexts to convince the seller to hand over the items to him so that he could package them appropriately in front of him and temporarily place them in the hotel safe.

What is the “Rip-Deal” method?

However, when delivering the package with the items, the “appraiser” did not deliver the newly packaged items but different – ​​fake ones in packages that were so similar that the seller could not realize that it was a clone (the “Rip-Deal” method).

Regarding their movements, it was verified that they were traveling by air or road, even using luxury vehicles. The case file that was formed was submitted to the competent prosecutor’s office.