In Odessa, a fraudulent call center that deceived Czech citizens for 5.5 million rubles was liquidated

[Father]

Organized fraud forty-year-old Ukrainian from the Dnieper. As performers, he attracted two citizens of Ukraine and six Czech citizens who were put on the international wanted list for fraud as part of a criminal organization.

The attackers used virtual telephony with a fake number and called residents of the Czech Republic, posing as employees of the state supervisory banking authority. During the conversation, they persuaded victims to provide remote access to their phone or computer, or they learned bank card details and transferred funds to controlled accounts. In several cases, fraudsters convinced their victims to withdraw cash and hand it over to a fake courier who was supposedly supposed to deliver them to a safe place.

Thus, they managed to deceive at least sixteen residents of the Czech Republic for more than UAH 5.5 million. The funds received from illegal activities were converted into cryptocurrency or cashed out for the purchase of luxury cars and real estate, which were registered with friends and relatives.

Cyber police established the location and identity of the criminals. Law enforcement officers conducted 23 searches, as a result of which, with the strong support of the KORD fighters, the special police battalion and operatives of the criminal investigation department of the GUNP in the Odessa region, they detained all nine participants of the criminal scheme together with the organizer. During the search, they seized computer equipment and mobile phones with evidence of crimes committed, as well as elite cars of the defendants and more than one hundred thousand dollars in various currencies.

Investigators of the National Police announced to the Ukrainian defendants on suspicion of fraud committed on a particularly large scale by a criminal organization. They face up to twelve years in prison with confiscation of property. Foreign criminals were detained on the basis of instructions from the prosecutor, and petitions were sent to the court for further extradition to the Czech Republic.

This is the second case of successful investigation of illegal activities of call centers under the agreement on the creation of a joint investigation team (JIT) with Czech law enforcement agencies. In September 2023, the National Police of Ukraine extradited six fraudsters to representatives of the Czech law enforcement agencies - now they are in custody.

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• Source: https://od.npu.gov.ua/news/ukrainsk...madian-chekhii-oshukaly-na-55-milioniv-hryven

 

[Father]

All of them were put on the international wanted list for other frauds as part of a criminal organization. The seventh attacker will be extradited in the near future.

Stopping the criminal activities of an international criminal organization and transferring criminals from their country to foreign colleagues became possible thanks to The Joint Investigation Team ( JIT), an agreement on the creation of a joint investigation team that was concluded between Ukrainian and Czech police officers.

It is established that together with two Ukrainians, foreign scammers called their compatriots in the Czech Republic using virtual telephony with a number substitution. They presented themselves as employees of the state supervisory banking authority, persuaded victims to provide remote access to their phone or computer. In some cases, they lured out bank card details and even persuaded victims to withdraw cash and transfer it to a fake courier who would supposedly deliver it to a safe place.

The funds received from illegal activities were converted into cryptocurrency or cashed out for the purchase of luxury cars and real estate, which were registered with friends and relatives. Thus, fraudsters deceived at least sixteen citizens of the Czech Republic for 5,5 million hryvnias, while the cyber police did not establish the identity and location of the criminals at the request of the Czech police.

More than a hundred Ukrainian and Czech police officers were involved in the investigation. The fraudsters were detained in late April in Odessa, and on May 10, National Police investigators under the escort of the National Guard handed them over to Czech law enforcement agencies at the international checkpoint "Krakovets" in the Lviv region. According to the Czech authorities, these scammers caused 30 million kronor in damages to Czech citizens.

The practice of joint investigative teams and support from Europol and Eurojust allows Ukrainian police officers to eliminate international criminal groups and solve related crimes much faster. This is the third successful investigation into the termination of fraudulent call centers involving Czech citizens.

The previous extradition of fraudsters who defrauded hundreds of Czechs for more than 7.5 million euros took place in September 2023, now criminal proceedings on the fact of fraud are being investigated by the Czech competent authorities, and its defendants face up to ten years in prison.

While the Armed Forces of Ukraine protect the borders of Ukraine and the EU countries from Russian invaders, the Ukrainian police are doing everything possible to protect civilized countries not only from the military, but also from any other crimes.

The pre-trial investigation was conducted in cooperation with the Cybercrime Department of the National Headquarters for Combating Terrorism, Extremism and Cybercrime of the Criminal Police and Investigations Service of the Czech Republic. Procedural guidance - Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine.

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• Source: https://www.gp.gov.ua/ua/posts/do-c...casnikiv-miznarodnogo-saxraiskogo-call-centru