A man suspected of conning up to 400 people out of money via various internet scams will go on trial in Leeuwarden next week, the Leeuwarder Courant newspaper said on Thursday.

The man built websites and webshops for dozens of companies but included special software enabling him to cream off names and passwords so he could buy goods posing as someone else.

He also broke into social media accounts and delved into the lives of his victims so he could construct elaborate cons, the paper said.

In one case, he infiltrated the Facebook page of a person who wanted to buy a boat. By posing as the page user, he was able to con a Swedish friend of his victim into making over cash, ostensibly to help fund the purchase.

Addiction

Police say the man began his life as a conman to help pay for his gambling addiction. He later became addicted to amphetamines which he took to enable him to stay up all night.

The police investigation into the man began in 2014 and involved dozens of detectives. In most cases, he stole less than €100 from his victims. This, police said, was clever because people are less likely to notice a small theft or to make a police report.

The 35-year-old has been charged with fraud, identity theft and hacking computers and will appear in court next Tuesday for a procedural hearing.