Police busts VIP taxi scam using homeless bank account data

Police have busted a phony VIP taxi service in Greece that was using the bank accounts of homeless people to collect deposits from cab drivers.

Police spokesman Christos Parthenis said Monday that seven people have been arrested.

They are accused of taking more than 110,000 euros in deposits from drivers who were promised a customer list that would include officials from the European Commission and the World Health Organization.

Parthenis said a 66-year-old man and 39-year-old woman, both Greek, were accused of paying panhandlers and homeless people in Athens to use their bank accounts to collect the deposits.

Taxi drivers, approached around the country, typically paid a 1,500-euro deposit to join the service, which promised to pay them 300 euros a day for at least a month.

[AP]