An international network suspected of online investment fraud has been hit by an operation coordinated by Germany, Eurojust and Europol, where Albania, Kosovo and North Macedonia have also been targeted. A call center has been raided in Kosovo, which was allegedly used to convince citizens to invest large sums of money in fake platforms.
According to the announcement of Eurojust and Europol, the scheme is suspected to have caused over 4 million euros in damages, while potential victims have been identified in about 50 countries of the world.
During the operation, a total of 17 locations were searched and more than 100 servers were seized, along with evidence and other assets. Seven people have been arrested, with the aim of extraditing them to Germany, the country that led the operation.
The Special Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Kosovo and the Police of Kosovo have also participated in the action, through the Directorate for the Investigation of Economic Crimes and Corruption and the Sector for Financial Investigations.
Investigations have revealed a company based in Cyprus and Israel, which allegedly supplied criminal groups with fraudulent websites to carry out online investment schemes. Authorities have also identified suspected clients of this company in Albania, Kosovo and North Macedonia, who are suspected of running illegal call centers.
According to investigators, the network used online platforms that posed as legitimate investment services and promised high profits from trading cryptocurrencies, foreign currencies and stocks.
Victims were initially encouraged to invest small amounts. The fake platforms then showed fictitious profits in order to build trust and convince them to invest even more money.
People posing as financial intermediaries exerted psychological pressure on clients to increase investments. When the latter sought to withdraw the money, they faced various obstacles and excuses, until the fraudsters cut off contacts and disappeared with the invested amount.
The investigation was launched in 2022, following a complaint by a German couple who had invested their savings through an online platform, but had not been able to withdraw the money and claimed profits.
After more than four years of investigations and several international actions, the authorities managed to identify the suspected structure of the network and the persons allegedly involved in the financial frauds.
Cooperation between countries was a key element of the investigation. Within Eurojust, two joint investigation teams were created, one of which included the authorities of Albania and Kosovo. Meanwhile, Europol sent experts to both countries to help with digital investigations and analysis of seized evidence.
Even the Special Prosecutor’s Office of Kosovo had confirmed the development of an action in cooperation with international authorities. The spokeswoman of the institution, Arbnora Luta, stated that the operation was taking place in several locations, without initially providing other details.
“We can confirm that an action is underway, in cooperation with the international authorities”, Luta had declared.
