German town pays big money to fake fire engine sellers

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• Fraudsters scammed 400,000 euros from the town of Dülmen by submitting a fake invoice with manipulated bank details.
• The money was intended for new fire engines but could not be recovered despite efforts.
• The city has strengthened its security measures to prevent similar cases of fraud in the future.

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The town of Dülmen in North Rhine-Westphalia was the victim of a sophisticated scam: 400,000 euros, around 384,272 francs, disappeared.

This sum was originally intended for the purchase of new fire engines. The incident shows that not only private individuals but also public institutions can become the target of e-mail scams.

The fraud was made possible by a deceptively genuine invoice that the perpetrators created with information about the vehicle purchase. This invoice contained bank details of a foreign account to which the city council transferred the money.

Mayor Carsten Hövekamp emphasizes that the perpetrators were so professional that anyone could have fallen for it. Despite all efforts, the money could not be recovered, reports "WDR".

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Reactions and consequences

The loss was split between the city council and the vehicle manufacturer, which was a painful experience for both sides. Nevertheless, the purchase of the vehicles was ultimately completed.

In order to prevent future cases of fraud, the city of Dülmen has strengthened its security measures. These include both technical improvements and training for employees to increase awareness of external emails, especially those containing bank details.

The editor wrote this article with the help of AI.