The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia reports that a local resident has been detained in Tbilisi on charges of defrauding 102,300 GEL by selling gold valuables.
During an investigation into the malicious large-scale fraud, the suspected person was detained by officers of the Anti-Fraud Investigative Division of the Tbilisi Police Department.
Officials say the suspect was able to build the trust of the victim by offering to sell the victim’s gold items. He said he would pay back the entire amount within a month of the sale.
The victim subsequently handed over the gold jewellery to the suspect. The suspect, the investigators say, after the transaction, did not give the money in return, but kept 102,300 GEL (about 1,920 USD).
The victim tried to get his money back from the suspect several times, only to fail. He later filed a police report on the case.
As a result of the report the officers carried out an investigation, gathered evidence and defined the context of the alleged offence. The man was then traced and arrested under a warrant.
The investigation is being conducted under Article 180 of the Criminal Code of Georgia , which governs large -scale fraud. The case concerns a large amount, the charge of a crime of that size involves a prison sentence of up to nine years in a prison if the suspect is convicted.
The investigation is still open, and police officers are interviewing potential victims to see if the suspect was involved in any other cases.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs has called on residents to be vigilant when paying for valuables, especially jewellery, gold, and money. The police have also called on residents to make sure they identify buyers when buying valuables and that financial deals are not based on verbal promises.
The Ministry has also asked those who think they may have been scammed to report it to the police so that investigators have a better chance to build a case if they report soon after they were scammed.
The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty by a court.
