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- Shaky "Well-being": the organizer of the financial pyramid was sent to a penal colony for 12 years
Shaky "Well-being": the organizer of the financial pyramid was sent to a penal colony for 12 years
The Zamoskvoretsky court of Moscow sentenced Vitaly Sokolovsky, one of the organizers of the financial pyramid "Welfare", to 12 years in prison, Izvestia found out. Under the guise of investing in cryptocurrency, the company attracted depositors, mostly pensioners, promising them 144% per annum, apartments and land plots at half price. As a result, dozens of people lost their savings, which they saved for the treatment of children, the purchase of housing and cars.
What was the charge
The case of Vitaly Sokolovsky was considered for more than two years — all this time the defendant was in jail, his lawyers failed to change the measure of restraint. One of the creators of "Welfare" was accused of fraud on a particularly large scale committed by an organized group. There are 50 criminal episodes in his case, and the damage amounted to 319.9 million rubles.
Registered as an investment fund, the Welfare company was actually a pyramid scheme, it follows from the case. Under the guise of investing in cryptocurrency, mostly elderly people were involved in it, who were promised monthly dividends of 12%.
According to the case file, Sokolovsky personally signed contracts with depositors at the Moscow offices of Blagosostoy — on Pyatnitskaya Street, Khoroshevsky Highway and Krasnopresnenskaya Embankment. The latter was located just a few hundred meters from the Russian government building. Clients contributed amounts from 4.5 million to 15 million rubles, and the money was often taken from funds set aside for the purchase of apartments, cars or the treatment of children.
For some time, some of the depositors actually received the promised payments, however, according to the investigation, they were made at the expense of new participants in the scheme — according to the principle of the financial pyramid.
Dozens of contracts that appear in the Sokolovsky case were concluded in 2021-2022, but none of them were eventually executed. The money received from investors was stolen by the defendant and his accomplices. The Zamoskvoretsky court agreed with all the arguments of the prosecution and, finding Vitaly Sokolovsky guilty on all counts, sentenced him to 12 years in a penal colony.
Another creator of the pyramid, Vitaly Pavlov, escaped from the investigation, but was detained by the German police on an Interpol warrant. However, in July 2025, the German Ministry of Justice refused to extradite the accused of fraud to Russia. Now, as Izvestia found out, Pavlov will be tried in absentia along with another person involved in the case, Ruslan Ostapov: the trial of them in the Zamoskvoretsky court has already begun.
Denis Korsun, a lawyer representing the interests of some of the victims, is pleased with the verdict. But he believes that for full justice it is necessary to obtain from the convict and the return of all funds stolen from his principals. The lawyer hopes that this will happen.
Cryptopyramide for pensioners
Welfare differed from many other financial pyramids in that it actively lured potential customers with promises of earnings from the now fashionable cryptocurrency trading.
As follows from the case file, the defendants relied on cryptocurrency, hoping that many elderly investors are poorly versed in digital assets or are not at all familiar with the principles of their work. The founders of the investment fund personally met with clients and colorfully described the prospects, convincing potential clients that the opportunity to earn an unthinkable 144% per annum is quite real. Such profitability, the representatives of "Wellbeing" assured, was provided by the company's unique know-how. According to them, the fund's analysts, due to fluctuations in the exchange rates of various cryptocurrencies purchased with investors' funds, could accurately determine the moments for transactions and make super profits.
For persuasiveness, clients were shown motivating videos and photographs depicting expensive real estate — mansions and land plots with yachts, allegedly acquired by the investors of the "Prosperity" as part of the "Dream for 50" program. As the pyramid's management assured its participants, the investment fund pays 50% of the cost of all purchases.
Along the way, the founders of the pyramid created an atmosphere of a successful investment fund around the project. Private events with raffles for gifts and cash prizes were organized for the participants, choosing prestigious venues. One of these events took place in the elite estate "Secrets of Rublev" on Rublevo-Uspenskoe highway.
Investors were also told about the launch of their own Intelex crypto exchange, where they would allegedly be able to trade digital assets on their own. To access the platform, it was necessary to replenish the account by about $ 1 thousand.
In addition to Moscow, the company's activities extended to St. Petersburg, Krasnodar and Sochi, where the company's branches operated.
Why do pyramids keep working?
Despite regular criminal cases and website blockages, pyramid schemes continue to appear, changing forms. If in the 1990s these were classic "mutual aid funds", today pseudo-investments in cryptocurrencies, "investment clubs", projects with the promise of ultra-high returns, schemes through messengers and social networks, as well as pseudo-brokerage platforms are common.
— The main feature of modern pyramids is that they rarely call themselves investment funds, but disguise themselves as IT projects, cryptoplatforms or closed investor clubs, — said lawyer Ekaterina Kutuzova.
The organizers of such schemes often use complicated terminology and create the appearance of a legitimate business, said Ekaterina Kosareva, managing partner of the VMT Consult agency. According to her, victims often trust such projects because of stories about "the same people" who allegedly managed to earn money.
— It is probably impossible to protect pensioners from falling into the pyramid completely. A particularly strong argument is real or fictional stories about the profits that the same pensioners have received," the expert believes. — Encouraging those who entered the scheme first is a characteristic feature of the pyramid.
From the point of view of legislation, a number of mechanisms have already been created to protect citizens. For example, consumer cooperatives cannot attract funds from people who are not their shareholders. In addition, there is a liability for attempting to collect investments without the necessary permits and licenses. A mechanism for targeted protection of pensioners has also appeared. If a person appoints a trusted person, such as a relative, they will receive notifications about questionable transactions and will be able to block such a transfer if necessary. However, these measures do not allow us to completely exclude the appearance of new schemes.
At the same time, according to experts, the detection of such crimes remains a difficult task. According to Andrey Zavyalov, partner of the Intellectual Capital law firm, sometimes financial pyramids can be difficult to recognize not only for ordinary citizens, but also for specialists.
"The country has mechanisms for detecting and suppressing such schemes, including with the participation of Rosfinmonitoring, tax authorities, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and other structures," he said.
12 years for "Well-being"
A sentence of 12 years in prison is expected, given the large material damage and the large number of victims, Andrei Zavyalov believes.
Lawyer Ekaterina Kutuzova noted that such a period is at the upper limit of practice in cases of financial pyramids. If the court finds that this is not a failed investment project, but a large-scale fraud with a large number of victims and particularly large damage, the terms can reach 10-12 years. According to the expert, similar sentences have already been passed in other high-profile pyramid schemes cases.
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