Phone scammers have developed a novel scheme to defraud Russian citizens, compelling them to purchase expensive jewelry and then hand these items over to couriers.
In this scheme, fraudsters contact victims, posing as law enforcement officials. Under various pretexts, they pressure the targets into gathering all their savings and using the money to buy an expensive piece of jewelry.
Subsequently, the scammers persuade the victims to give the purchased jewelry to couriers. After this exchange, the perpetrators cease all contact.
This new scheme follows a previous incident in Moscow, where a schoolgirl reportedly transferred over 1.2 million rubles to fraudsters. In that case, the scammer intimidated the girl by threatening her with legal issues and tax problems.
Clement Ashworth 
Barnaby Whitfield