SHARE
COPY LINK

FRAUD

Agency to probe small-time cheats

The Swedish Social Insurance Agency (Försäkringskassan) will be launching a probe into small-time benefits cheats in Sweden, offences that the agency claims have not been given the priority they deserve by police and prosecutors.

Agency to probe small-time cheats

“We are currently getting too little support by police and prosecutors when it comes to suspected crimes regarding smaller amounts. These crimes have not been prioritized and won’t be getting the attention that I wish they would get,” said the director general, Dan Eliasson, to daily Dagens Nyheter (DN).

According to Eliasson, police have not been that interested in pursuing investigations into people who cheat the agency out of some 10,000-20,000 kronor ($1,490 – $2,980).

However, the agency has been courting police and prosecutors in order to get them to see that these everyday crimes should be taken more seriously.

And Eliasson told the paper that this has had the desired result:

“Now there is a will to do this and I would be surprised if we didn’t see a shift toward that already by next year,” said Eliasson.

The agency will be looking especially into dental care claims and the claims for temporary parental benefit for care of children (Tillfällig föräldrapenning för vård av barn, VAB).

Eliasson explained that he didn’t want to discuss how much money the cheating involved but that it was a significant enough amount to warrant that the agency deals with it.

“Now that we are launching our investigation into small-time fraud we will catch a lot of cheats. At the same time it is important to remember that most people who make use of the social insurance actually want to pay their own way,” he told the paper.

The Local/rm

twitter.com/thelocalsweden

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

GERMANY

Germany cracks down on fake Covid vaccine documents

German police have set up a special team to fight a growing number of forged vaccine certificates being sold in the black market

Germany cracks down on fake Covid vaccine documents
People who are fully vaccinated can show their vaccination booklet, which has a stamp and a sticker inside. Photo: Ina FASSBENDER / AFP

Police in Cologne have warned of a group of fraudsters selling fake vaccination certificates, a growing problem the scale of which is still unclear.

The police said the fraudsters worked in encrypted Telegram chats, making investigations difficult, and were selling fake documents with all the stamps and signatures, including a mark about vaccination with BioNTech or AstraZeneca.

READ ALSO: Germany probes Covid-19 testing centres for fraud

The fraud involved both real traffic in fake documents as well as scams luring customers into paying €100.

People in Germany who are fully vaccinated can show their vaccination booklet, which has a stamp and a sticker inside. Those who don’t have a booklet get a piece of paper.

Covid health passes are currently being rolled out across the EU, with a European health passport expected to be available from mid-June.

READ ALSO: What’s the latest on how the EU’s ‘Covid passports’ will work for travellers?

Over 44% of the adult population in Germany has received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, and more than 18% of Germans have been fully vaccinated.

German police have said forged coronavirus vaccine documents are becoming an increasing problem.

Last month, a couple in Baden-Württemberg was accused of selling fake coronavirus vaccination certificates.

SHOW COMMENTS