In November 2014, a coordinated international operation led to the arrest of 118 individuals in connection with an online fraudulent scheme against airline companies. The operation was carried out at more than 80 airports and involved over 60 airlines and 45 countries. The investigation was coordinated by Europol, INTERPOL and Ameripol.

The suspects allegedly purchased plane tickets using stolen or fake credit cards generating losses of USD 1 billion. The investigation revealed that the fraudulent scheme was in several cases connected to other crimes, such as drug and human trafficking.

The airline and credit card companies involved participated actively in meetings with law enforcement at Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre (EC3). Such companies provided investigators with information contained in their databases. This partnership allowed law enforcement to identify 281 suspicious transactions.

An extensive international network allowed investigators to trace the suspects. The International Air Transport Association provided information on individuals using fraudulently obtained tickets. INTERPOL played a crucial role in identifying wanted persons and stolen documents. Europol officers were active at several European airports as well as in Singapore and Bogota. Eurojust provided assistance from the Hague.