YEREVAN, July 14. /ARКА/. A criminal group operating in one of the capital’s business centers and stealing citizens’ money through Internet calls has been exposed in Armenia, the Investigative Committee of Armenia reports.
“Information was received that a group of individuals, operating in the office premises of one of Yerevan’s business centers, under the pretext of profitable investments, contacted citizens living abroad and, through fake investment platforms under their control, using software and network tools, gained remote access to various bank accounts and savings of these individuals,” the statement said.
The victims’ bank cards were linked to various virtual platforms controlled by the criminals, where changes were made and currency and cryptocurrency transfers were made. Thus, an especially large amount of funds was stolen.
The members of the criminal group then transferred the money to numerous crypto wallets and cryptocurrency exchange points operating in Armenia, where they were cashed out. The fraudsters used the funds received to pay persons involved in the criminal organization, rent premises and use them for other purposes.
During the preliminary investigation, a criminal case was initiated against two persons under Article 318, Part 1 (creation or management of a criminal organization) and Article 257, Part 3, Clauses 1 and 3 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia (theft of computer data on an especially large scale committed by a criminal organization). 100 million drams obtained by criminal means were transferred to the state budget.
The preliminary investigation is ongoing.-0-
