Three members of a family have been arrested in Budapest after defrauding through an illegal gold-buying business elderly people out of hundreds of millions of forints.
Police say one victim was given a drink that caused him to lose consciousness, while another was tricked into signing away a property worth HUF 145 million. Investigators also seized nearly HUF 200 million worth of gold.
The Budapest Police Headquarters (BRFK) released details of the case on Sunday, 20 September. According to the official police statement , the suspects, aged 28, 50 and 53, ran an unauthorised gold-buying business in Újbuda, Budapest’s District XI.
They allegedly attracted customers by offering prices well above market value. Once people entered the premises, however, the suspects reportedly used deception, intimidation and other methods to obtain their valuables for far less than they were worth.
The victims were mainly elderly people, with the suspects allegedly adapting their methods to each person’s circumstances.
Elderly man loses consciousness, wakes up without his gold
One of the most disturbing cases involved a 71-year-old man who visited the business carrying gold worth more than HUF 10 million.
According to police, the suspects offered to drive him home so they could purchase additional valuables he had left there. Before leaving, however, they allegedly gave him a drink containing an unidentified substance. The man lost consciousness and later woke up injured in the street. His gold jewellery had disappeared.
In another case, the suspects allegedly approached an elderly man on the street, claiming they wanted to buy his property. After gaining access to his home, they reportedly stole valuables and documents, and later persuaded him to sign papers supposedly related to his deceased wife’s inheritance proceedings.
Instead, the man was tricked into signing a life annuity agreement, through which the suspects acquired a property worth approximately HUF 145 million. Ownership was subsequently registered in the name of one of their relatives.
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Gold bars melted down, customers pressured into accepting less
Other victims were reportedly lured to the business with attractive offers for their gold. Once the gold bars had been handed over, the suspects allegedly melted them down and then claimed the metal was of poor quality. They offered only a fraction of the originally promised price.
Customers who wanted their gold back were refused. Police say some were kept at the premises for hours, facing pressure and feeling outnumbered and eventually, desperate to leave, they accepted payments tens of millions of forints below the initial offers.
In some cases, the suspects allegedly cut jewellery into pieces before a sale had been agreed, allowing them to classify it as scrap gold and offer a much lower price.
Police seize nearly HUF 200 million in gold
Investigators from Budapest’s District XI police station arrested the three family members on 15 September. All three were questioned on suspicion of fraud committed as part of a criminal group and as a regular business activity.
During searches, officers discovered and seized gold bars, jewellery and other gold items with an estimated value of nearly HUF 200 million. The suspects were taken into custody, and a court subsequently ordered their pre-trial detention.
The investigation remains ongoing, and the three suspects are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
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