Massive fraud with Linky meters has just been revealed in Franche-Comté. This fraud, clever and widespread, concerns hundreds of households as well as professionals and even… local elected officials!
At the heart of this affair, elected officials, artisans and restaurants were all caught in the net of a technical manipulation which allowed them to pay only a fraction of their actual electricity consumption.
LJG discusses this large-scale fraud in detail.
A fraud that actually hid much more…
Initially, a chance discovery by the gendarmes of the Besançon brigade triggered a series of investigations.
An elected official from Belfortcaught red-handed, used an illegal method to reduce the electricity bill for his home and his optical stores.
The ramifications of this Linky meter fraud affair proved far-reaching, involving artisan bakers, stud farms and a well-known restaurant in the region.
The shadow artisans
Investigators identified two men as the architects of this plot.
- The firstnicknamed the “poser”, was responsible for manipulating the meters to hijack their functions.
- The secondthe “tout”, had the role of recruiting customers willing to pay between 1,000 and 2,500 euros to benefit from electricity at a knockdown price.
The mechanics of Linky meter fraud in Franche-Comté
The trick lay in installing sophisticated derivationsallowing a 80-90% reduction on invoices.
This manipulation was not only fraudulent, it also represented a potential fire risk, endangering users and those around them.
Justice strikes hard to convict the fraudsters
Following their arrest, the main culprits were tried at the Besançon courthouse.
Prison sentences, substantial fines, as well as reimbursement of the sums taken from Enedis, were imposed on them.
For the beneficiaries of this fraud, the time has now come for regularization and sanctions.
Enedis in action
Enedis, victim of this massive fraud, has put in place measures to detect any anomaly in the opening of the meters. The company remains vigilant and continues to conduct investigations to prevent any recurrence of these illicit actions.
An elected official in the spotlight
Among the beneficiaries, the elected official from Belfort attracted particular attention. The latter claims to have been duped, believing he was participating in a simple optimization of his energy consumption.
It remains to be determined whether this defense will hold up in the face of the overwhelming facts revealed by the investigation…
My name is Michael. I am a journalist for this magazine where I analyze and break down current events in order to provide you with articles that will allow you to have as nuanced and fair an understanding of global issues as possible. Passionate about creating bridges between stories and people, I joined this site to practice interactive journalism, where each article is an open dialogue with the reader.
