Victim of identity theft, he receives more than 45 fines in a few months

1,260 euros. This is the amount seized on June 3, 2024, from the account of Vincent Colomb, a 22-year-old student, by the Lyon-Amendes Treasury to pay for fines received on TER trains. “That day, I received a letter from my bank (a third-party holder notice) informing me that a sum of money had been seized from my account,” the young man explained to Le Parisien .

However, the Master 2 marketing student in Lyon, who is working in an online training company , has never made these journeys, since he simply does not take the train to get to school or work . Surprised and concerned by this debt, the origin of which he does not know, Vincent went the next day to the treasury located near Part-Dieu, in the 3rd arrondissement of Lyon.

There, he discovered that this sum resulted from several dozen fixed fines issued for lack of a ticket on regional trains operating in the Rhône region. And there, the scam was quickly uncovered.

Journeys he never made

Indeed, the address given to SNCF controllers by an individual pretending to be Vincent Colomb is located in Roches-de-Condrieu, a town located south of Vienne, in Isère. However, this address does not correspond in any way to that of the real Vincent, who lives in Villeurbanne in the Rhône.

On the other hand, the imposter did provide his real date of birth, which aroused the victim's suspicions and prompted him to go there to find out more. "The address given leads to an abandoned house, subject to a demolition permit," he explains. This explains why the young man never received the reminder letters from the SNCF and the exorbitant amount demanded, at 100 euros per fine, increased to 180 euros once increased.

Upon consulting the statement sent by the Lyon-Amendes Treasury, Vincent Colomb was astonished to discover that the very first fine dates back to September 24, 2022. Since that date, more than 45 fines have been issued , all on various regional express trains (TERs) in the Lyon region. The total sum now exceeds 9,000 euros.

Disillusioned, Vincent says: “This person keeps taking the train. Every week, I call the complaints department to contest a new fine so it doesn't get increased. I have to systematically provide them with a certificate from my employer and the school. It's very cumbersome to manage!”

A situation that weighs on the young man's daily life, who would rather concentrate on writing his final year dissertation. He has already filed three complaints against unknown persons for identity theft , but no concrete progress is in sight. "The police tell us that it's up to the SNCF to do the work. And at the SNCF, we're told that it's not possible to find this person."

Since then, the public prosecutor has decided to close the case, having failed to identify the perpetrator. “Since the person has not been arrested, the Lyon (Rhône) prosecutor's office can do nothing except intervene with the SNCF ,” explains his lawyer, Gabriel Versini-Bullara, who sent a letter to Jean-Pierre Farandou, president of the SNCF, in the hope of breaking the deadlock. “I don't think the perpetrator of the crimes is that unknown to SNCF inspectors, because he's been making the same train journeys for months and months,” he adds. However, his letter has remained unanswered.