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Promises of easy money and safe investments led thousands of Brazilians to fall for a million-dollar scam. A well-planned scheme deceived investors with a fake oil fund, promising impossible returns. Now, more than 5 THOUSAND victims are trying to recover their losses. See how this scam was set up!
The dream of making money without effort has turned into a nightmare for thousands of Brazilians.
Promises of guaranteed returns, high yields and a platform that seemed safe convinced investors to put their money into a supposed oil fund.
But when everything seemed perfect, the cruel reality came to light: the scam had already claimed more than 5 THOUSAND victims and caused a loss of at least R$15 MILLION.
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Million-dollar scheme deceived thousands of people
According to a report from the IG portal, the criminal scheme operated mainly in Pernambuco, but also reached victims in Minas Gerais, Goiás and São Paulo.
The scammers created a website with a structure similar to that of OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) and an Israeli fund company to lend credibility to the scam.
The promise was tempting: invest R$200 and receive R$10 per day after seven days. For larger amounts, the return was even more attractive. Anyone who bet R$80, for example, could earn R$1.120 per day over the course of a year.
To reinforce the illusion of security, the platform allowed sporadic withdrawals, encouraging new investments and creating a false sense of stability.
However, last Saturday (25), the website simply went offline, leaving thousands of investors at a loss and without any way of contacting those responsible.
How the scammers operated
According to criminal lawyer Rándalos Madeira, interviewed by the iG portal and responsible for defending victims, the criminals structured the scheme with frightening precision.
The coup affected both highly educated and less educated people, regardless of social class.
Scammers created WhatsApp groups in different regions of Brazil to share “evidence” of the profitability of investments.
They promoted video conferences, live broadcasts and campaigns with even more profitable promises for contributions on specific dates.
One of the most used psychological triggers was the offer of differentiated returns for investments made on specific dates.
For example, anyone who invested R$20 by January 10 would have a return of 6%, which led investors to increase their bets.
The lawyer explains that the average investment per victim was around R $ 10 thousand, but there are cases of investors who lost up to R$150 in the scam.
Failure of financial institutions
The criminal scheme took advantage of regulatory loopholes and the structure of the financial system to operate.
Fraudsters opened shell companies and fintechs to move funds in an apparently legal manner.
Madeira highlights that the lack of stricter supervision allowed transactions to occur without much suspicion.
Failures in banking regulation were also identified as facilitating the scam.
According to the lawyer, the banks should have identified the incompatibility between the companies' activities and the amounts moved.
“It’s as if a clothing store moved R$10 million in three months. This is not consistent with the company’s CNAE”, explained Madeira.
What do the banks say?
According to iG, the portal contacted o Nubank and the Federal Savings Bank, cited by the lawyer, but so far has not received a response. The website said that the space remains open for demonstrations, the same goes for the CPG.
The case serves as a warning to Brazilians seeking miraculous investments and promises of easy money.
Unfortunately, schemes of this type are common and often leave thousands of victims with huge losses.
And you, what do you think should be done to prevent scams like this from continuing to happen? Leave your opinion in the comments!
