Prosecutor’s Office arrests 7 for transnational call centre fraud
Victims were lured with enticing financial deals, leading to the fraudulent misappropriation of significant sums of money. Several million Swiss francs, belonging to the citizens of Switzerland, were laundered through the acquisition of real estate and carrying out other economic activities. Photo via Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia
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The Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia arrested seven members of the organised crime group on Saturday as part of the international investigation against transnational crime involving fraudulent call centre services, in cooperation with the law enforcement agency of Switzerland and under the coordination of the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation, the body said on Sunday.
The Office on Thursday carried out investigative and procedural actions at several locations in the capital city of Tbilisi, searching so-called call centres, dozens of individuals and their residential houses, cars and workplaces, seizing hundreds of electronic devices, documents and a large amount of cash.
According to the investigation, the organised group established a fraudulent call centre in Georgia, setting up e-commerce platforms under various brand names and creating misleading websites to pose as reputable investment companies, the body noted.
Victims were lured with enticing financial deals, leading to the fraudulent misappropriation of significant sums of money. Several million Swiss francs, belonging to the citizens of Switzerland, were laundered through the acquisition of real estate and carrying out other economic activities.
Criminal prosecution has been initiated against all seven individuals charged with money laundering and fraud, with the offence punishable by nine to 12 years of imprisonment. Property worth ₾5 million (about $1.8mln) was also seized from the group.
The fight against transnational crime remains “a top priority” for the Prosecutor's Office, the state body said, noting it had initiated criminal prosecution against 72 individuals and three legal entities from the years 2021 to 2024.
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.
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 Friday said it had solved two transnational crime cases, with one targeting citizens of the United States from Georgia and the other involving a foreign citizen defrauding French-based enterprises from the country.
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.