Citizens were searched for 600,000 hryvnias: in Zaporizhia police detained a group of fraudsters
The defendants set up the work of “call centers”: they called citizens and offered to make contributions in order to keep monetary compensation based on the results of consideration of proceedings in courts for previously committed offenses.
The illegal activities of the criminal group were stopped by the operatives of the strategic investigations department in Zaporizhia region, the investigators of the investigative department of the regional police and the employees of the Voznesenivska district prosecutor's office of the city of Zaporizhzhia.
According to the investigation, the criminal group included six local residents. They set up the activities of “call centers” and directly performed the role of so-called operators. The defendants called citizens and represented themselves as employees of the executive service of judicial institutions. Using psychological techniques, they were offered to receive monetary compensation based on the results of consideration of proceedings in the courts in which they were victims. However, for this, citizens had to make certain contributions. Not feeling the danger from such “sensitive” employees of institutions and wanting to receive the promised compensation as soon as possible, people fell into the “next trap” of fraudsters.
During the pre-trial investigation, the police received evidence of the involvement of the members of the criminal group in the seizure of funds of six citizens for a total amount of more than 600,000 hryvnias. In addition, according to preliminary data, they may be involved in at least 20 facts of fraudulent seizure of citizens' funds in the amount of more than UAH 5 million.
Yesterday, September 5, operatives and investigators with the force support of the special unit KORD detained three members of the criminal group in accordance with Article 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine. In addition, authorized searches were carried out at the locations of the “call centers”, the residences of the defendants and in their cars. They seized computer equipment, mobile phones, “rough” records, “instructions” for communicating with victims, cars.
At present, the detainees have been informed of suspicion under Part 3 of Art. 190 (fraud) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The issue of choosing preventive measures for them is being resolved.
After a number of procedural measures, a decision will be made to report the suspicion to other members of the criminal group.
For the crime, the defendants may face up to eight years in prison.
Department of Strategic Investigations of the National Police of Ukraine
