A group of people who created an artificial shortage of railway tickets to Europe through unauthorized access to accounts was exposed in Kyiv. The criminals resold tickets at three times the price via social media.

A group of people reselling international railway tickets at triple the price was exposed in Kyiv. The offenders gained unauthorized access to accounts and created an artificial shortage. And then resold the tickets through social media. This was reported by the Cyberpolice, UNN reports .

Details

According to the Cyberpolice, the high demand for rail travel has provoked the emergence of a black market and those wishing to make money by reselling tickets for the most popular flights.

The investigation found that the criminals, gaining unauthorized access to third-party accounts, bought tickets to popular European rail destinations, creating an artificial shortage for other passengers. The criminals then resold the tickets at a price three times higher than their real value on various Internet platforms, including in Telegram groups.

The police identified at least five people who sold "trips" under this scheme and conducted a series of searches at their residences in Kyiv and Kyiv region, from where they seized computers and gadgets containing third-party accounts, bank cards and a large number of purchased tickets to different destinations.

Criminal proceedings were initiated under Part 4 of Article 190 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (fraud) and Part 5 of Article 361 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (unauthorized interference with the operation of information (automated), electronic communication, information and communication systems, electronic communication networks committed during martial law). They face up to fifteen years in prison.