OREANDA-NEWS. According to the National Police, seven people were detained in Spain on suspicion of extorting large sums of money from immigrants from Russia under the pretext of stopping investigations and closing criminal cases.

According to RIA Novosti, among the detained are citizens of Russia, Lithuania, Ukraine, Serbia, Estonia, Uzbekistan, Germany. The operation was carried out in Malaga and Madrid.

Members of the group carefully studied the biographies of their victims, including whether they could be prosecuted in Russia. In some cases, the amount of blackmail reached half a million euros.

Having found a victim for blackmail, the members of the group made it clear that they had access to police data and the means to initiate or close legal cases in Russia. "In order to avoid the initiation of these cases or, if necessary, close them, they demanded 500 thousand euros from their victims, posing as intermediaries with the Russian authorities," the police said. In addition, in some cases, they showed a police report, very similar to the real one, in the name of a Spanish judge, from which it follows that an investigation is underway. A ransom of half a million euros was also demanded to receive a copy of this report.

One member of the group was detained while receiving part of the money from the entourage of one of the victims in order to "resolve his criminal problems in Russia."

The detainees are accused of extortion, money laundering and membership in a criminal organization, all of them are in pre-trial detention.