A 38-year-old man from Schiedam was arrested last Tuesday by the police on suspicion of large-scale internet fraud. He was presented to the examining magistrate on Friday, who decided that the suspect would remain in custody for an additional 14 days.
The Public Prosecution Service suspects the man of deliberately failing to deliver items that customers ordered and paid for through a webshop. These items primarily included game consoles and phones. The man owns several webshops. One of these webshops was previously taken offline by the Authority for Consumers and Markets, but this did not stop him from continuing his activities.
In total, more than 1,300 reports have been made against this suspect. Due to the capacity for investigation and prosecution, it is impossible to investigate all these reports individually.
Be cautious when ordering
Before making a purchase, it is wise to check if there have been negative experiences with the seller. Use the link check the seller on the police website. It is also always advisable to first check the reviews of an (online) company before doing business with them. If something seems too good to be true, it often is.