Georgian Prosecutor's Office continues to fight transnational call centre fraud with European partners
Georgia’s effective and successful participation in combating transnational crime was “several times indicated” by international partners, including the German Prosecutor's Office and Eurojust, the state body highlighted, stressing it was its “one of the main directions” to fight the “widespread” crime in Europe. Photo via pog.gov.ge
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The Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia on Saturday said it “intensively” continued to fight against transnational crime involving fraudulent call centre services, together with law enforcement agencies of European partner countries and under the coordination of the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation, in order to expose involved individuals and especially organisers of the transnational crimes.
Georgia’s effective and successful participation in combating transnational crime was “several times indicated” by international partners, including the German Prosecutor's Office and Eurojust, the state body highlighted, stressing it was its “one of the main directions” to fight the “widespread” crime in Europe.
Within the framework of the joint investigation group, a number of investigative activities were carried out, including “large-scale operations” in dozens of locations on the territory of Georgia in October 2021 and November 2022, the Office said, noting dozens of involved individuals, as well as their apartments, cars and workplaces, were searched in the effort, with hundreds of electronic information carriers, documents and a “large amount” of money seized as a result.
With the involvement of around 400 Georgian law enforcement officers in special operations, the leaders and members of the organised criminal groups have been arrested, and criminal prosecution has been initiated against the legal entities involved in the crime.
The Eurojust “highly evaluated” the special operation carried out in Georgia in October 2021 in cooperation with Germany, during which seven members of an international criminal group, which had fraudulently embezzled “millions of euros” from German citizens, were arrested in Georgia.
In 2022, the Prosecutor’s Office conducted two “large-scale” operations, charging dozens of individuals and several legal entities, with about 60 German and 300 Georgian law enforcement professionals involved in the operation.
This March, the Office also took special measures against fraudulent online platforms and persons involved in alleged crimes, as a result of which a criminal group was identified, whose actions caused €89 million of damage to 33,000 citizens of various European countries.
A total of 46 call centres operating in Georgia have suspended their activities while being investigated by the Ministry of Finance for alleged “illegal activities”, Lasha Khutsishvili, the Finance Minister of Georgia, said on Monday.
The British public broadcaster BBC on Wednesday revealed its investigation into a fraudulent “call centre” scheme involving David Kezerashvili, a wanted former Defence Minister of Georgia in the United National Movement Government, in a report that detailed a global network of a scam operation targeting customers.
A fraudulent scheme linked with David Kezerashvili, the wanted former Defence Minister of Georgia in the United National Movement Government, by an investigation of the British Broadcasting Company has cost at least 33,000 victims in Europe an estimated €89 million, Eurojust said on Thursday.
Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili has instructed Minister of Finance Lasha Khutsishvili to investigate activities of call centres in the country, following a lawsuit stemming from allegations related to an October case of fraudulent operations set up by a group of Georgian and Israeli citizens in Georgia.
The Counter-Intelligence Department of Georgia’s State Security Service and the country’s Prosecutor's Office on Monday detained an individual for an attempted illegal sale of radioactive substances.
The Georgian Prosecutor General’s Office on Wednesday said it was involved in “large-scale” operations run under the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation against online fraud schemes involving cryptocurrencies, after the European body released information on the efforts on Tuesday.
The Georgian Prosecutor General’s Office on Monday announced the commencement of legal proceedings against a criminal group associated with a “call centre” scam scheme operating in the country and targeting German citizens with fraud.
The Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia on Thursday said it was carrying out investigative and procedural actions at several locations in the capital city of Tbilisi as part of the international investigation against transnational crime involving fraudulent call centre services.