RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – A massive scam on cryptocurrency investments under a pyramid model has left more than 2,000 people affected in Brazil.
It is the case of Alpha Consultoria, a “company” created in February 2021 by Sadraqui de Freitas and Nathan Assis de Oliveira, whose purpose was “capital laundering” and with which such a large number of people were tricked under a Ponzi scheme.
According to the local police in Brazil, this association promised investments of 30% per month to people who invested money in them. Alpha Consultoria pointed out that the money would be invested in cryptocurrencies.
The company opened in February 2021 and began delaying payment of clients’ profits about two months later on the grounds that a broker had indiscriminately blocked the accounts.
However, Brazilian authorities pointed out that such blocking never existed and that the amounts available in the company’s accounts were very low.
The agents identified that, in a few months, the two partners, who are the subject of arrest warrants, moved more than US$43 million in their private bank accounts.
One of the partners has 30 criminal records for embezzlement, criminal organization, criminal association, money laundering, and crimes against the popular economy. The other has 24 complaints about the same crimes.
After discovering the fraudulent scheme, the Brazilian police launched an operation called Operation Aria, in which they searched for Freitas and Oliveira in several of their properties, but so far, they have not found the fugitives.
Ponzi schemes, named after the original case in the 20th century, promise large capital returns that, in reality, come from other users who invest in the scam. Upon “success”, the rumor of profit spreads, and more people enter these pyramids and are encouraged to bring more companions.