A Rojales couple have been arrested over an alleged €86,000 fraud involving an elderly British man whose bank accounts were reportedly drained after the suspects gained his trust over several years.
The male suspect, Matt Smith, had previously held a public-facing role connected to Rojales Town Hall and the local PSOE administration. Smith, who was number 11 on the PSOE list for the May 2023 municipal elections, was appointed shortly after the vote as mayor Antonio Pérez’s personal representative in the municipality’s urbanisations, including Ciudad Quesada.
The position is similar to that of a local liaison for residential areas away from the town centre. In Rojales, where many urbanisations are home to foreign and elderly residents, such representatives can become trusted points of contact for people needing help with administrative matters.
Smith was dismissed from the role on January 26, 2024, around four months after his appointment. Pérez said he encouraged Smith to step down after receiving information that caused concern.
Despite the dismissal, Smith reportedly continued to collaborate with the council, mainly by providing translation support at meetings with residents of Ciudad Quesada, sometimes appearing alongside the mayor. This continued even though the council already had an official interpreter. Until recently, Smith also shared council-related announcements and information on his social media accounts.
According to Pérez, Smith has had no further connection with the local administration since his arrest, pending the outcome of the case. The opposition Partido Popular group in Rojales has said it will demand explanations at this month’s ordinary council plenary session.
The Guardia Civil investigation began at the start of the year after a British citizen reported that the bank accounts of a deceased relative had been emptied. Initial inquiries led officers to focus on people close to the victim.
Investigators later identified the suspects as a 42-year-old man and a 41-year-old woman who had lived in Rojales for years and ran a local consultancy aimed at foreign residents.
According to the Guardia Civil, the pair allegedly built a relationship of trust with the victim, an elderly British man with health problems and no close family in Spain. They reportedly offered to help him with day-to-day matters, gradually gaining access to his bank accounts.
The alleged fraud is believed to have taken place between 2019 and 2022. During that period, investigators say the suspects carried out multiple financial operations, including transfers to their own accounts, payments in shops and cash withdrawals from ATMs.
Some withdrawals allegedly occurred while the victim was hospitalised, while others were reportedly made after his death.
A detailed analysis of bank records, together with inquiries with several financial institutions, allowed officers to trace the movement of the money and confirm the alleged fraud. Investigators also found that Smith had previous convictions for similar offences.
Although the arrests have only recently been made public, they took place on March 25 and March 30. Both suspects were brought before the investigating section of the Court of First Instance in Torrevieja and were later released with precautionary measures while the case continues.
See also: Rojales Couple Accused of Draining €86,000 from Elderly Briton’s Bank Accounts
