German collection: what threatens a suspect in luxury car fraud

A suspect in luxury car fraud could face up to ten years in prison. The German citizen promised to deliver Rolls-Royce, Mercedes and BMW to Moscow, including their armored models, but did not fulfill his obligations. To find clients, he joined a premium golf club where he offered his services. The cost of the supplied vehicles ranged from 80 to 100 million rubles, the price of armored models reached 170-180 million. The amount of damage is estimated at 1 billion rubles. The details of the case are in the Izvestia article.

How to cheat with luxury cars

Ilan Josef Medvedev, a 33-year-old German resident, was detained in Moscow, lawyer Alexander Dobrovinsky told Izvestia. The German is suspected of creating a large-scale fraudulent scheme related to the supply of luxury cars. According to the lawyer, the businessman promised to deliver Rolls-Royce, Mercedes and BMW cars to Moscow, including their armored models, but did not do so. The damage from his actions is estimated at about 1 billion rubles.

According to Izvestia, the alleged organizer of a major scam was detained on May 28, and an investigation is underway against Ilan Medvedev. The scheme for the supply of luxury cars to Moscow, according to Alexander Dobrovinsky, has been working for about three years. The organizer sought out his clients at specialized exhibitions, among car dealership owners, and some of them were found at the closed Skolkovo golf Club, of which the businessman himself was a member.

He promised a potential buyer to deliver an elite car from Europe to Moscow in six months at a lower-than-market price. The organizer, according to the lawyer, assured that the relatively low price of cars is achieved, among other things, due to a small commission of the intermediary — only 5%. The cars were supposed to arrive in Moscow via Belarus or the Black Sea ports.

Their cost ranged from 80 to 100 million rubles, the price of armored models reached 170-180 million. The buyer transferred the money, but did not receive the car at the agreed time. The supplier asked to wait for another couple of months, citing unexpected difficulties associated with customs clearance or delivery disruption due to port closures.

However, even after the delay, the car did not reach the customer, and the seller was stalling for time again.

— Although Medvedev was born in Germany, he studied at MGIMO, speaks excellent Russian, is well educated and has a good personality, so they trusted and waited for him. But any patience comes to an end," Dobrovinsky said.

At the same time, he categorically refused to name the victims, noting only that among them there are not only individuals, but also large car dealerships.

Izvestia sent inquiries to the press service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Investigative Committee of Russia with a request to confirm the detention.

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What did Medvedev get sentenced for?

The suspect had previously been involved in a similar case. In 2025, the Khoroshevsky Court in Moscow sentenced him for fraud on an especially large scale. According to the materials studied by Izvestia, in March-May 2020, Medvedev, along with an unidentified person, misled the company's management under the guise of supplying respirators to SoftLift+ LLC and received prepayments under two contracts, but did not fulfill the delivery obligations.

He called himself a representative of Foreson International Ltd (Foreson International Limited) and convinced the customer company of the real possibility of supplying scarce protective equipment from abroad. To gain the trust of customers and create the appearance of a legal transaction, he conducted correspondence, arranged personal meetings, provided commercial offers and product samples. To maintain this legend, he and an accomplice knowingly provided false information about the availability of goods, delivery dates, flight numbers and customs clearance, and also sent fictitious documents.

Under the guise of refunding part of the funds, he transferred back only a small amount, but the bulk of the money was stolen, the court found. In addition, the investigation found out that a number of documents, including air waybills and SWIFT refund confirmation, were fake or contained false information.

In court, Medvedev stated that his mother owns Foreson International Ltd., which manages assets, and he himself is just an employee whose position does not allow him to manage finances and access the organization's checking account.

As a result, the court sentenced Medvedev to a fine.

Autoblogger and TV presenter Elena Lisovskaya told Izvestia that this is a standard deception scheme based on the fact that some orders are actually being fulfilled, and "at absolutely impossible prices."

That is, there are ten people who promote the company in every possible way. Thanks to their advertising, hundreds of prepayments are collected, obligations to some customers are closed at the expense of others, and customers continue to be assured that deliveries are about to take place. At some point, a large number of people accumulate who wait for their orders for six to eight months, explained Elena Lisovskaya.

— Recently, one of the dealers in the Krasnodar Territory collected money and disappeared. Before that, he told clients, "We've been working for eight years, where are we going," she added.

According to the article on fraud on a particularly large scale, if found guilty, Medvedev could face up to ten years with a fine and with restriction of freedom.