More Than 1 Billion Dram Stolen from 59 Citizens via WhatsApp and Viber; Case in Court

The prosecutor has submitted to the Court of General Jurisdiction of Yerevan the materials of a criminal case regarding 1 billion 73 million 486 thousand drams stolen from 59 citizens, as well as the attempted theft of 38 million 879 thousand drams from another 19 citizens. This was reported by the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Republic of Armenia.

The investigation revealed that foreign nationals M.Sh., M.M., A.P., an individual known as 'Maks', and other unidentified persons participated in the activities of a criminal organization from September 26, 2025, to April 21, 2026. The members of this criminal organization developed a unified mechanism for committing large-scale fraud by complementing each other's actions.

In particular, they created fake accounts on the apps WhatsApp and Viber using the names and photos of well-known individuals within the public, aided by individuals H.B., R.S., and mobile phone numbers registered in their names. From these accounts, messages were sent to the acquaintances of the mentioned individuals stating that their acquaintance had problems with various state bodies, and that a staff member from the National Security Service of the Republic of Armenia would contact them regarding this matter.

Then, posing as NSS employees under various names, including 'David Ashot Oganesyan', 'Captain Vazgen Harutyunyan', 'Gurgen Levoni Simonian', 'Vahan Seyrani Poghosyan', and 'Arman Tigrani Sargsyan', they called citizens to instill psychological pressure and create an atmosphere of fear and anxiety regarding supposed financial problems, demanding confidentiality and compliance with the instructions purportedly from a Central Bank employee.

Continuing their criminal actions, the members of the organization also represented themselves as employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs police, bolstering the victims' trust with the name 'David Nikoyan'. Subsequently, these members claimed to be employees of the Central Bank, presented false certificates, and convinced citizens that to avoid potential problems, they needed to transfer the funds available in their bank accounts to other so-called 'safe' accounts.

Overall, the criminal organization stole 1 billion 73 million 486 thousand drams from 59 citizens and attempted to steal 38 million 879 thousand drams from 19 citizens. A search warrant has been issued for M.M. The part of the criminal case concerning M.Sh., A.P., H.B., and R.S. has been submitted to the competent court with an approved indictment.