Baku: The Main Directorate for Combating Cybercrime of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan (MIA) has successfully conducted an operation targeting online financial pyramids, resulting in several arrests, as reported by the MIA Press Service.

According to Azeri-Press News Agency, the MIA’s Main Directorate for Combating Cybercrime received numerous complaints regarding “First Zenit Capital,” a company falsely operating as an investment firm. The company allegedly promised individuals that their funds would be circulated on the international e-commerce platform Shopify. However, investigations revealed that the company was not involved in legitimate investment projects but was instead running an electronic pyramid fraud system designed to deceive people with promises of high profits.

During the operation, authorities identified and detained Karim Bashirzade, the founder-director of the company, along with Taleh Alizade, who was implicated in the illegal activities. It was discovered that nearly 500,000 AZN had been seized from victims through these fraudulent methods. Bank cards and other electronic evidence related to the fraudulent activities were confiscated from the detained individuals.

A criminal case has been initiated under the relevant articles of the Criminal Code at the Main Directorate. A preventive measure has been selected for K. Bashirzade and T. Alizade by the court’s decision, and operational and technical measures are ongoing.