Scammers collected over 20 million hryvnias from gullible Ukrainians, promising super profits from investments in cryptocurrency. The organizer of the financial pyramid has already been notified in absentia of suspicion, the Kyiv City Prosecutor's Office reports.
It was established that a group of individuals led by the suspect, starting in October 2022, without any civil law contracts, attracted funds from victims in the amount of more than 20 million hryvnias. The minimum investment was 50 USDT — a cryptocurrency token pegged to the US dollar at a ratio of 1:1.
To attract victims, the scammers used Instagram bloggers and called their activities an “international investment platform.” Pseudo-investors promised high profits from fictitious business projects. On the controlled sites, users saw their invested money seemingly with a profit, although in reality their funds were withdrawn to the organizers’ accounts.
Currently, suspicion has been reported in absentia to a 32-year-old citizen of Ukraine who is abroad. He is charged under Part 4 of Article 190 of the Criminal Code - fraud on a large scale or through illegal operations using electronic computing equipment. The sanction of the article provides for 3 to 8 years of imprisonment.
The case is being investigated by law enforcement, and experts emphasize the need to verify any offers to invest through social networks and crypto platforms.
