Suspects of remote fraud were detained by Police in Novosibirsk

'As a result of a large-scale operation carried out by operatives in cooperation with investigators of the MIA of Russia Administration for the Novosibirsk Region with the participation of the Rosgvardia, the activities of the group, which specialized in the remote theft of citizens' money, were suppressed.

According to available information, the offenders had databases of financial organizations and called clients who had left applications for loans. Posing as employees of banks, they informed citizens that in order to obtain a loan they allegedly had to pay a commission, insurance premium or courier services first. Then they urged the victims to transfer money to accounts controlled by the group leader.

At the same time, the accomplices maintained strict secrecy. They changed SIM cards and mobile phones, as well as the addresses of rented apartments, transporting equipment from one address to another. Each newcomer was given a special script when applying for a job, containing an algorithm of actions and patterns of responses for communication with clients.

The GA for Investigation of the MIA of Russia GA for the Novosibirsk Region instituted criminal cases on the grounds of an offense under Article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Eight suspects were detained by operativists in their rented apartment in Novosibirsk, which was used as a call center. A total 20 apartments and office premises were inspected. During the searches bank cards, accounting documents, electronic data carriers, telephones, computers and other items of evidentiary relevance for the criminal cases were found and seized.

At the moment the Investigators identified eleven victims. They are residents of Kaliningrad, Irkutsk, Sverdlovsk, Moscow, Voronezh regions, the Transbaikal and Khabarovsk territories, as well as the Republic of Chuvashia. The preliminary investigation continues,' said the Spokesperson for the Russian MIA Irina Volk.