Investors were cheated out of 26 million in Odesa

A pyramid scheme that defrauded Ukrainians of almost UAH 26 million was exposed in Odesa. The organizer and three members of the group were brought to trial for fraud and money laundering.

This was reported by the press service of the Odesa Regional Prosecutor's Office.

Law enforcement officers sent an indictment to the court against the organizer and three members of the criminal group. They are suspected of fraud on a particularly large scale and money laundering under Parts 4 and 5 of Article 190, Part 3 of Article 209 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

According to the investigation, the criminals launched a fictitious website, which they presented as an investment holding, but in fact used for a Ponzi scheme: the first investors received payments at the expense of new ones.

To give legitimacy to the activity, the organizer registered a company with dozens of types of economic activity, rented an office in an Odesa shopping mall, and actively advertised the so-called investments on social media.

The dealers organized presentations, showed videos with bundles of currency and " investors' successes." At the beginning, they even paid small amounts to investors to build trust, but later the transfers stopped.

The funds received were transferred into cryptocurrency for three years. Among the 94 identified victims are members of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The total losses have already reached UAH 25.7 million, but the number of victims is estimated to be up to 20,000 people across Ukraine.

During the searches, law enforcement officers seized equipment, phones, data storage devices, draft records and cash. It was established that the organizer managed to launder more than UAH 60 million, purchased 25 cars, 5 land plots, and built a car wash, which he presented as an investment project.

By court order, all the defendants are in custody, and their property has been seized.

Also recently, in Odesa, the court extended the detention of a native of Tiraspol, who is suspected of creating a fraudulent scheme under the guise of investing in cryptocurrencies. The investigation believes that he and his accomplice seized hundreds of thousands of dollars, promising the victims large profits.

Анна Бальчінос