Beware of new online fraud;
police cautions public
Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Crime Investigation Department (CID) on April 21 cautioned people not to fall prey to the new online fraud unleashed by Sergei Mavrodi, a Russian, who was earlier arrested in several criminal cases and underwent a term in prison.
Additional Director General of CID T Krishna Prasad said that Sergei has been promoting Mavrodi Mondial Moneybox (MMM) scheme through the website www.mmmindia.in, promising 100 per cent interest per month on the investments made by the people.
Minimum amount of deposit starts from Rs 5,000 while a member would be allowed to deposit a maximum of Rs 50,000.The Russian has been luring and duping gullible people claiming that the deposits were being collected for a social cause and to provide a platform for the like-minded people to help each other, the CID chief said.
The Russian claims on the website that Mavro is like any currency. It has two different exchange rates – one for selling and one for buying. The members could sell or buy Mavro using the special automatic software on the official website and the exchange rates would be decided by Sergei twice a week.
The website says deposits would be confirmed only after the member transfers full amount intended to deposit. The deposit would be released only after one month from the date of purchase, but it could be sold even before release at zero per cent interest rate, the website says.
The CID chief said that the scheme was already prevailing in Maharashtra, Gujarat and Punjab and was likely to enter Andhra Pradesh. Hence, he appealed to the people of the State not to fall prey to the bogus scheme.