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The Living Force
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/18/20081113/twl-duped-by-pyramid-schemes-colombians-4bdc673.html
Duped by pyramid schemes, Colombians take to the streets
Thousands of irate Colombians in ten cities took to the streets and clashed with police Wednesday after realizing they were duped out of their savings in pyramid schemes police believe were set up by drug traffickers.
Interior Minister Fabio Valencia said untold thousands of people were victims of "massive fraud" over the past few months, despite warnings by the government.
"The truth is that the government has been slow and inefficient in dealing" with the criminals, but promised prompt intervention by the justice department and greater control of financial businesses in future.
Protesters took to the streets when they found the offices of the fake businesses promoting the savings schemes shuttered, and their savings gone for good.
The biggest street protests were in southwestern Popayan, where many of its 200,000 inhabitants fell victim to DRFE company, a ficticious firm promoting the savings scheme that disappeared overnight along with all its clients' money.
Some 2,000 people gathered outside the offices of the company that had promised a 200 percent profit on investments made only a few months ago, as rumors spread that its staff were fleeing the premises with suitcases full of money.
Oscar Paz, in charge of city security, said the protesters tried to storm the building and clashed with police.
He did not say if there were any injuries in the melee, but announced a curfew in the city beginning at 7:00 pm to calm the situation.
The government suspects the pyramid schemes, in which people are enticed by initial profits and encouraged to enlist more participants to contribute to the savings fund, were really money-laundering operations set up by drug traffickers.
No estimates were given of the total amount of money that was scammed, but on Friday the Internal Revenue Service asked the Justice Department to investigate 1,302 companies for suspect financial activities it said netted some 4.4 billion dollars.
"Everybody was full of hope for December, for the holidays. The people thought their lives would change," Mauricio Agrero told AFP. The small business holder said he lost 1,500 dollars to DRFE.
Rebeca Kujar was sad because she lost all the money she had saved to send her 27-year-old daughter to university.
In some cases, the fraudsters pinned notices to doors telling their clients what had happened.
"You stupid suckers. We're out of here. Thanks for believing us," read one scribbled message on an office door in Pasto, 960 kilometers (600 miles) south of Bogota.
Duped by pyramid schemes, Colombians take to the streets
Thousands of irate Colombians in ten cities took to the streets and clashed with police Wednesday after realizing they were duped out of their savings in pyramid schemes police believe were set up by drug traffickers.
Interior Minister Fabio Valencia said untold thousands of people were victims of "massive fraud" over the past few months, despite warnings by the government.
"The truth is that the government has been slow and inefficient in dealing" with the criminals, but promised prompt intervention by the justice department and greater control of financial businesses in future.
Protesters took to the streets when they found the offices of the fake businesses promoting the savings schemes shuttered, and their savings gone for good.
The biggest street protests were in southwestern Popayan, where many of its 200,000 inhabitants fell victim to DRFE company, a ficticious firm promoting the savings scheme that disappeared overnight along with all its clients' money.
Some 2,000 people gathered outside the offices of the company that had promised a 200 percent profit on investments made only a few months ago, as rumors spread that its staff were fleeing the premises with suitcases full of money.
Oscar Paz, in charge of city security, said the protesters tried to storm the building and clashed with police.
He did not say if there were any injuries in the melee, but announced a curfew in the city beginning at 7:00 pm to calm the situation.
The government suspects the pyramid schemes, in which people are enticed by initial profits and encouraged to enlist more participants to contribute to the savings fund, were really money-laundering operations set up by drug traffickers.
No estimates were given of the total amount of money that was scammed, but on Friday the Internal Revenue Service asked the Justice Department to investigate 1,302 companies for suspect financial activities it said netted some 4.4 billion dollars.
"Everybody was full of hope for December, for the holidays. The people thought their lives would change," Mauricio Agrero told AFP. The small business holder said he lost 1,500 dollars to DRFE.
Rebeca Kujar was sad because she lost all the money she had saved to send her 27-year-old daughter to university.
In some cases, the fraudsters pinned notices to doors telling their clients what had happened.
"You stupid suckers. We're out of here. Thanks for believing us," read one scribbled message on an office door in Pasto, 960 kilometers (600 miles) south of Bogota.
