KOCHI: City police, on Tuesday, arrested two persons who allegedly swindled over Rs 1 crore from numerous persons via a multi-level marketing (MLM) scam.
Officers said the accused -- identified as Joshy (51) of Vennala and Berson (52) of Karanakkodam -- ran a company named Crowd One in Kochi, and collected money from people, including their friends and families, by enlisting them in the MLM scheme. They lured the gullible investors by promising that 2.50 Euros would be credited to their accounts every week.
“The duo cleverly campaigned about the returns, without revealing anything concrete about the company’s operations,” said an officer. “The victims received neither the returns nor the investments. The fund collected was converted into bitcoins worth Rs one crore and transferred into various accounts.”
Two other persons accused in the case were suspected to be abroad. More details about the fraud and the bitcoin transactions would be known only after arresting them, said sources.
Police had launched a probe after a case was registered at the Palarivattom Police Station based on numerous complaints in 2021. The accused were booked under IPC Section 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property).