The State Police, in cooperation with law enforcement agencies in Ukraine, uncovered and disrupted the activities of an international organized crime network, identifying 300 specially trained so-called money mules and associated individuals, 213 of whom are residents of Latvia.
The Economic Crime Investigation Division reported that the participants of the network are linked to cybercrime and the laundering of criminal proceeds amounting to over 1.6 million euros.
During an international investigation, a fraudulent scheme was uncovered, which employed the method of "refund fraud". Under this scheme, unjustified requests were placed on online trading platforms, and monetary payments for goods or services were organized using deliberately misleading information or in violation of established return procedures. As a result, significant financial damage was inflicted on one foreign payment institution.
To obscure the traceability of the origin of the funds, the fraudsters conducted structured transactions on cryptocurrency platforms, integrating the criminal proceeds into the digital asset ecosystem, the State Police explained.
The participants of the criminal network acted as an organized crime group, deliberately recruiting and training "money mules", as well as organizing the circulation of criminal proceeds in various jurisdictions.
This year, during a coordinated operation, law enforcement detained individuals involved in the criminal scheme in Latvia and Ukraine. A total of 300 specially trained "money mules" and associated individuals were identified, including recruiters of the "mules" and organizers of financial flows. Of the identified individuals, 213 are residents of Latvia.
Most of the suspected Latvians are young people aged 18 to 20. The investigation established that they were recruited through social networks.
In December of this year, the police conducted large-scale searches, seizing technological devices and communication means containing data on the planning of financial schemes and confidential communication in encrypted applications.
The State Police emphasizes that the participants in the scheme - the so-called money mules - are not random or misled individuals, but consciously acting and functionally significant elements of international criminal structures that facilitate the circulation and concealment of criminal proceeds. "This operation confirms that money mules, their recruiters, and organizers of financial flows are being identified and held criminally liable regardless of their role or level in the hierarchy of the criminal network," the State Police noted.
In connection with the incident, the Economic Crime Investigation Division has initiated a criminal process regarding the laundering of criminal proceeds committed on a large scale or by an organized group, as well as the illegal use of someone else's financial instruments or payment means, committed on a large scale or by an organized group. A criminal process has also been initiated regarding the receipt, transfer, and distribution of data that enables the illegal use of financial instruments or payment means.
The Ukrainian police have launched an investigation into the fraud committed by an organized group on a large scale. Simultaneously, an investigation is being conducted into the laundering of criminal proceeds.
Depending on the actual role and degree of involvement of each suspect in the criminal scheme, the question of bringing them to criminal responsibility will be decided.
For the most serious of the mentioned crimes, imprisonment for a term of three to 12 years is provided, with or without confiscation of property and probation supervision for up to three years or without it.
The police urge residents never to transfer their bank cards, PIN codes, or access data to bank accounts to third parties, not to respond to offers to obtain easy profits without signing an employment contract, especially related to opening accounts, receiving payments, or transferring someone else's financial means.
The police also call on the public to immediately report to law enforcement about attempts to recruit or involve them in criminal activities as "money mules".
As reported, in cooperation with colleagues from other countries, the State Police in December disrupted the activities of an organized crime network that operated fraudulent call centers in the Ukrainian cities of Dnipro, Kyiv, and Ivano-Frankivsk.
This network involved 12 Latvians who were detained. The criminals deceived residents of various European countries, including Latvia.
