Pemex warns against contract fraud ring

Mexico’s Pemex filed a criminal complaint with the office of the country’s attorney general to investigate a fraud ring allegedly selling marked-down hydrocarbons while posing as company officials, the NOC said in a Tuesday press release.

Pemex detailed the ploy, saying fraudsters first target fuel marketers by offering to sell hydrocarbons below market value. To persuade the target, they orchestrate an introduction outside Pemex offices with individuals impersonating high-ranking NOC officials, present counterfeit documents and sign fake contracts. The target is the then asked to deposit money for the sale into a third-party bank account. Once the money clears, all communication is cut off.

Pemex is asking the public to be wary of such activities, and reminds fuel marketers that an authentic purchase from the company involves the undersigning of a marketing contract, which must be filled in and completed online using the Pemex Transformación Industrial portal.

The NOC has been a lucrative target for criminal organisations, experiencing close to USD 1.09 billion in losses from damaged pipelines or siphoned hydrocarbons.