'Catalan Robin Hood' who scammed €500k from Spanish banks released in France

Enric Duran, the so-called Catalan Robin Hood who stole half a million euros from Spanish banks, was released in France last week after spending a year in preventive detention.

The activist gained notoriety in 2008 for carrying out one of the most audacious acts of civil disobedience in recent Catalan history.

Duran requested 68 loans from 39 different banks, using a fake company and falsified documents to justify the income.

In total, he managed to defraud nearly €500,000. “I’ve stolen from those who rob us the most to denounce them and build alternatives for society,” he said at the time.

He used the money to fund anti-capitalist initiatives, including the launch of a magazine that distributed 200,000 free copies denouncing issues like the debt-based monetary system and the close ties between major banks, politicians, and the media. 

After being reported by the banks, Duran left Spain just before his trial in 2014. He remained in France until the case expired in 2023 and is no longer wanted by Spanish authorities. 

However, he returned to the spotlight in June last year after being placed in provisional custody in France, accused of money laundering. 

The case stems from a cryptocurrency transaction involving the conversion of euros into digital currency for a man who allegedly obtained the funds fraudulently. 

Duran claims he was unaware of the illicit origin of the money. He submitted to the court a conversation he had with the client through the cryptocurrency trading platform LocalCoinSwap as evidence of this. 

“The client lied to me, saying he wanted to invest profits from his e-commerce business in bitcoin,” Duran said. 

He also believes that, if not for his past as the Catalan Robin Hood, he “would not have spent these months in preventive prison.” 

The activist now says he is “seriously” considering filing a complaint against those responsible for his detention. 

He also recounted that he was released just before midnight on a Wednesday, without being allowed to make a phone call and without any identification documents, forcing him to walk from the prison into the city of Paris in search of help. 

Duran is currently under supervised release with several restrictions: he is forbidden from leaving mainland France, must report to the police once a month, and cannot have contact with the other individuals under investigation, whom he insists he has never met. 

Additionally, he must pay €15,000 in bail and another €15,000 as an advance for civil damages.