Hundreds of students could be facing prison for letting scammers use their bank accounts to launder money.
Criminals have been contacting students through social media with the lucrative offers of making easy money for letting them use their bank accounts.
It is believed that hundreds of millions of euro have been laundered through student’s Irish bank accounts.
Detective Chief Superintendent Patrick Lordan likened the crime to “drug trafficking”.
Couple in their 80s 'taken to hospital with shock' after masked and armed thugs raid home in Blackrock, Co LouthHe said: “Custodial sentences are now in the frame. Because without a money mule, this fraud often doesn't work. It's like drug trafficking."
He added that there were several hundred student accounts in the country being used to launder money.
Mr Lordan told the Irish Independent: “What happens is that someone approaches a student and says 'a friend of mine wants to invest here in Ireland, but it's taking a while to get past the red tape, so I'll pay you €500 to use your account'.”
The money is then transferred into the student’s account before the student wires it to a different account.
He warned that students need to be fully aware of the legal consequences of their actions.
He also said that students who might have been in such a situation should report it to the authorities.
