Preliminary investigation of criminal proceeding initiated in General Department of Investigation of Particularly Important Cases of the RA Investigative Committee on stealing property and money of about 101 million AMD from 108 victims was completed on three accused.

Pursuant to factual data obtained through investigation, in summer, 2020 40 year-old resident of Yerevan received an offer from his acquaintance to take up the functions of the director of offices of fake credit companies founded and managed by the latter.

Receiving the offer, between June, 2020 and April, 2021 40 year-old man, agreed upon by consent, together with two 47 and 22 year-old women and other unidentified persons, in the name of the offices presented as credit companies with 14 different names, factually founded by his acquaintance but without state registration, through the targeted advertisement on pages registered on Facebook.com social network disseminated announcements on providing loans on favorable terms.

The citizens who had applied to them and expressed a desire to receive loans were invited to offices as intermediary organizations for providing loans rented in advance in different addresses of Yerevan where they presented that for low interest commission they allegedly could organize receiving loan amounts in a direct or indirect way from different banks and credit organizations that is purchasing goods on credit, selling them and giving the money.

Then, they accompanied the customers to different banks, credit and trade organizations and abusing their confidence took the loan money, goods or the receipts provided to them. Then they presented by cheating that a final calculation was allegedly required, it was allegedly necessary to sell the purchased goods, to calculate the amount of commissions after which only they could provide the promised money. However, they did not provide the money and stole it.

Besides, they accompanied the persons who had applied to them to different branches of banks, received from the customers by fraud the access data of “Mobile Banking” service opened in their names. However, abusing the citizens’ confidence they did not provide the citizens with money and transferring to other people’s accounts stole money by cashing it.

Through preliminary investigation it was found out that by the application of the above-mentioned fraud scheme perpetrated by the mentioned persons, money in particularly large amount - 101.182.461 AMD in total was stolen from numerous citizens.

On the base of the obtained sufficient evidence charge was pressed against 40 year-old man and the mentioned two women according to the Point 3 of the Part 3 of the Article 255 of RA Criminal Code. Absence ban was used as a pretrial measure against two women, absence ban and mortgage of 2 million AMD was used against the man.

The part on the latters was separated as a separate proceeding preliminary investigation of which was completed and the materials of the proceeding were sent to court.

It was earlier informed that preliminary investigation on the part of one of the defendants – 32 year-old acquaintance was also completed and with the bill of indictment was sent to court.

Note; Everyone charged with alleged crime offence shall be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law.