Police Hunt for Fraudster: Resort Swindled Out of $27,000

Police are on the hunt for a fraudster who was able to con a local resort out of $27,000. Last week, the Financial Controller of Itz’ana Resort reported to police that a man named Nicolas Paula, who claimed to be a 40-year-old American citizen, duped the staff out of an 8-day stay. The employee says Paula visited the resort on February 5 and presented them with proof of an online wire transfer amounting to just over ten thousand USD for a three-night stay. However, the resort later learned that the transactions were phony, and Paula was confronted, but he denied the allegations and extended his stay. The swindler allegedly continued to reassure the staff that payment would be made and provided screenshots of a ten-thousand-dollar transfer, which was also fake. On February 13, one day before his stay expired, the resort learned Paula had fled from the compound. Police have since learned that the man is allegedly a Costa Rican national, who used fake documents to pass as a US national.