Five people were detained in the city of San Ignacio, in the Misiones department, during Operation "Yida Transfronterizo," which investigates an alleged criminal organization dedicated to digital fraud, criminal association, and money laundering through cryptocurrencies. The procedures, carried out last Monday, were coordinated by prosecutors Ruth Karina Benítez and Diana Gómez from the Specialized Unit for Cyber Crimes of the Public Ministry, with support from specialized departments of the National Police.
According to the investigation, the network recruited victims through fake job offers posted on Facebook and Instagram, promising high earnings for simple tasks like classifying products for the Chinese market. After being recruited, people were induced to make an initial payment to join the supposed business. They then saw fictitious profits on a virtual platform but, when trying to withdraw the money, were forced to make additional payments equivalent to 20% of the accumulated amount under various pretexts.
Prosecutor Ruth Karina Benítez reported that many victims even pawned vehicles and other assets to meet the financial demands. The transferred amounts were then converted into the cryptocurrency USDT through the Binance platform and sent to digital wallets abroad, making tracking difficult. In one of the seized wallets, a balance of 18,000 USDT was identified, along with other high-value deposits under analysis.
The five detainees were identified as Carlos Ramón Segovia Báez, Jorge Rodríguez Morel, Jonathan Marcelo Segovia Báez, Néstor Manuel Galeano Martínez, and Luis Alberto Portillo Ávila, all residents of San Ignacio. They are identified as the main operators of the structure in Paraguay, responsible for managing the largest volumes of money before conversion to cryptocurrencies.
During the searches, cellphones with the Binance application, checks from different banks, cash, two firearms with ammunition, a pickup truck, CPUs, notebooks, and documents allegedly detailing victim recruitment and the scheme's operation were seized.
So far, the Public Ministry has counted 62 victims who have filed complaints, with estimated losses of about 700 million guaranis. However, analysis of financial movements revealed transactions exceeding $3 million in USDT, equivalent to over 22 billion guaranis. Authorities estimate the actual number of victims nationwide could exceed two thousand people. The investigation continues, and further arrests are not ruled out.