An Astana woman has been sentenced to six years in prison for fraud committed under the guise of teaching people how to work on marketplaces. Five victims lost a total of 15.6 million tenge, according to infohub.kz.
The Astana prosecutor's office said the woman used social media to offer training on running a business on online trading platforms. During the sessions, she gained her clients' trust and persuaded them to invest money in purchasing goods for resale, promising to return their investments with profit.
The woman used the money as she saw fit. The court found her guilty of fraud and, taking into account a previous conviction, sentenced her to six years in prison. The victims' civil claims were satisfied.
The supervisory authority warned that promises of guaranteed high profits and offers to hand over money for "business promotion" or investment via social media may be part of fraudulent schemes.
Citizens were urged not to transfer large sums without verifying the recipient's identity, the legality of their activities, and the documentation of obligations.
Earlier, Kursiv wrote that a court in the West Kazakhstan Region ordered two entrepreneurs to return money to 21 clients of online marketplace courses: the training did not deliver the promised results, including employment and paid internships. Each client was awarded 490,000 tenge for the training and 20,000 tenge in compensation for moral damages.