Bengaluru: Unearthing an international online multi-level marketing racket, city police have arrested four persons, including a woman New Zealand national, for allegedly collecting about Rs 50 crore illegally using social media platform to lure people to join their web-based company.
The four arrested have been booked under sections of the Prize Chits and Money Circulation Scheme (Ban) Act and Indian Penal Code section 420 (cheating), police said today.
"We have arrested four persons including a New Zealand national for illegally collecting Rs 50 crore through social media network," a City Crime Branch (CCB) statement said.
Acting on a tip-off, the CCB sleuths raided a hotel room here yesterday where the accused were explaining, advertising and collecting enrolment fee from 'victims' of "YOBSN Social Media Network MLM company", it said.
Action was also being proposed against the hotel for not sending Form-C to Foreigner Regional Registration Offices (FRRO) and allegedly abetting the accused, police said.
The portal "www.Socialmediatechnnologies.Com' is hosted from the United States of America, they said.
The foreign national has been identified as Driver Denise, who is the "Asia-Pacific Head" of the company.
She had been camping in the hotel since October 9 holding marketing sessions, they said.
The other persons arrested are Mohammad Khurram, Kiran Modi and Hithese Modi, all residents of Bengaluru.
Further investigation was on, police said without giving details about the exact modus operandi of the accused.
Preliminary investigation revealed that Denise has enrolled more than 30,000 people across the world and had collected millions of dollars worth about Rs 50 crore, police said.
Most of her members belonged to US (2,000), India (1,700), Malaysia (28,000), New Zealand (500), Dubai (200), Pakistan (100).
In India, her members are located in Karnataka (300), Maharashtra (800), Delhi (100), Punjab (100), Madhya Pradesh (300) and Hyderabad (100), they added.
Khurram has introduced 2,000 members and received US Dollar 10,000 as commission, police said.
