15 Israelis Arrested for Binary Options Fraud

15 Israelis Arrested for Binary Options Fraud

The prime suspect who was arrested is an Israeli lawyer.

The law enforcement of Israel and Germany have together busted a binary options fraud racket on Wednesday, arresting 15 suspects in Israel. The police released 11 suspects after interrogation but will bring the other 4 to court seeking an extension of their custody.

As reported by a local news outlet, the primary accused individual that was arrested in the raid is an Israeli lawyer, who is believed to be the co-owner of the company running the fraudulent activities.

However, another key suspect, who manages and controls the firm, is still at large. Though his identity is not known yet, he is believed to be abroad and is wanted in Israel for questioning.

According to the authorities, the suspects were operating call centers in Israel and other countries to run the investment scams. They primarily targeted German nationals with lucrative investment schemes and persuaded them to invest their money in stocks, foreign exchanges and commodities. However, the company disappeared with the funds without making any trades.

During the raids on the Israeli office premises, the authorities seized computers, mobile phones and various documents, along with cash. Additionally, several bank accounts tied to the company have been frozen, securing approximately 4 million shekels (around $1.24 million).

Raids after Raids

Earlier, another joint investigation by the Israeli and the German authorities led to the bust of another case of binary options fraud. This resulted in the freezing of accounts of Bit-Tech Technologies, a capital markets trading platform provider, with around 50 million shekels. But, there is no connection between the two separate rackets, as of now.

A fraudulent forex and crypto investment scheme investigated by the Israeli police and US FBI resulted in the arrest of 26 Israelis earlier this month. Though all the Israeli suspects were released, authorities in Cyprus, Ukraine and South Africa continue to bust suspects connected to the scam.