False Beggars Network Discovered In Australia

2024 Author: Steven Freeman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 08:15

A covert network of fake beggars has come to light in Australia. As reported by Daily Mail Australia, several people from China posed as beggars on the streets of Australia and collected hundreds of dollars each day which they then sent to accounts in their country. This network arranged passports and visas for Chinese traveling to Australia to pose as homeless to raise money.

Police in Victoria confirmed to Daily Mail Australia that several people have been arrested in a special operation to stop this mob. Police confiscated $ 1,000 in cash during the recent arrests.

Some of those arrested had in their possession receipts showing that they had exchanged Australian yuan banknotes to send electronically to China. The case is still under investigation and includes the collaboration of the Border Patrol and the Australian Federal Police.

Police in Victoria are asking not to give cash to beggars but to donate to organizations that help the homeless to avoid scams. "While most people asking for money in Melbourne are vulnerable and need help, there are a small number of professional beggars," a police spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia. The Herald Sun reported that these fake beggars stayed in local hostels and that there were five Asian women who were in charge of the operation, giving orders to these people who asked for money on the streets.