Latvian State Police cybercrime investigators, together with Ukrainian law enforcement agencies, have disrupted a fraudulent scheme carried out by an international organized crime group, which affected Latvian citizens, said a police release.
19 victims have been identified, and no less than 340,000 euros were defrauded, however, the total losses caused are still being determined, as the criminal group, which originates in Ukraine, has been operating for a long time.
Initially, officials of the Cybercrime Prevention Department of the Main Criminal Police Department of the State Police identified a large-scale investment fraud case. The fraudsters posed as investment “experts” and promised significant profits.
To gain the trust of residents, call center operators indicated that they had extensive experience in the field of investments and convinced people to install remote access software on their devices. The criminals lied that this was necessary in order to help the residents they called successfully invest money.
The callers had a customer database containing information about individuals. In order to launder illegally obtained funds, members of the organized criminal group registered in Ukraine as individual entrepreneurs and disguised themselves as programming service providers.
Ukrainian law enforcement agencies, working with their Latvian colleagues, conducted more than 30 searches in various regions of Ukraine, checking the suspects’ residences, workplaces and vehicles. Computer equipment, servers, cryptocurrency wallets, mobile phones, documents, bank cards, data carriers, as well as luxury cars purchased with fraudulently obtained funds were seized.
Four people, including the ring’s suspected organizer, have been charged with fraud under the Criminal Code of Ukraine, punishable by up to 12 years in prison. The court has imposed security measures on the detainees – arrests and house arrests.
The pre-trial investigation into the criminal case is currently ongoing. Other individuals who may be connected to this criminal activity are also being investigated.
Successful international cooperation was achieved thanks to the support of Eurojust (the European Union Agency for Judicial Cooperation in Criminal Matters) and Europol (the European Police Office), as well as the Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Latvia.
The Latvian State Police warns he public that investment offers that promise quick and significant profits should be evaluated critically and that it is unwise to install software on electronic devices at the behest of strangers.
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