MOSCOW, December 11. /TASS/. Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB), in collaboration with the Russian Interior Ministry, has exposed three Moscow-based illegal call centers that affected hundreds of citizens from more than 20 European and Asian countries, the FSB reported.

"The unlawful activities of an organized crime syndicate that controlled the operation of three call centers in Moscow have been disrupted," the FSB said. They were part of an international fraud network led by Khimprom crime group leader Yegor Burkin, who is on Russia’s wanted list.

According to the FSB, call center employees were procuring funds from individuals for a scam investment project. The fraud scheme affected hundreds of citizens from 20 foreign countries, including Bulgaria, Czechia, England, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Poland, Serbia, South Korea, and Turkey, causing damage amounting to tens of millions of US dollars, the FSB added.

Among other purposes, the funds were channeled into the Ukrainian armed forces, Interior Ministry Spokeswoman Irina Volk told reporters. "Recruited employees called foreign citizens, persuading them to invest in cryptocurrencies and various e-commerce projects. After the victims made money transfers to accounts owned by crime lords, communication with them stopped. According to available reports, among other things, the stolen funds were transferred to finance Ukraine’s armed forces," she said.

Top managers and some employees of the call centers have been detained as part of a criminal probe, with a substantial number of personal computers and communication devices seized. According to Volk, nine call center staffers have been arrested for stealing around 30 million rubles ($291,500) from Serbian citizens.

Search operations and the investigation are ongoing, the FSB said.