The incident unfolded between the afternoon of April 14 and the early hours of April 15, when a call to CIMACC-091 reported the fraud. A tourist couple claimed they had been deceived hours earlier into buying fake tickets for the match between Atlético de Madrid and FC Barcelona at the Metropolitano Stadium.
Officers from FOCUS de Centro and the Citizen Attention Group (GAC) responded to the scene. Following a swift investigation, they located five individuals dining at a fast-food restaurant on Gran Vía. Their descriptions matched those of the scammers who had approached the victims near the stadium.
The fraudsters presented themselves with radio transmitters, wristbands, and accreditations, leading the victims to believe the ticket sale was legitimate.
The victims paid 700 euros for each ticket. Upon attempting to enter the sporting event, they discovered the tickets were fake. Later, they returned to their accommodation area and encountered the alleged scammers at the same restaurant.
The five men were arrested as alleged perpetrators of a fraud offense and subsequently brought before judicial authorities. At the time of their arrest, 3,500 euros in cash were seized from them, along with the transmission equipment and identification elements used in the scam.
