The top of myWorld Spain has been arrested on pyramid fraud costs.
Spain’s Nationwide Police confirmed the arrest in a July thirty first press-release.
The arrest of the formally unidentified particular person follows a Excessive Court docket criticism filed by 803 myWorld victims. The criticism, filed both in late 2022 or early 2023, alleges 5 million euros in losses.
The alleged fraud was primarily based on a membership, loyalty, and membership recruitment program wherein victims had been required to make an preliminary deposit of €2,000 and subsequently make month-to-month funds of between €99 and €399, with the promise of “passive, recurring, and lifelong earnings”—the scheme even promised month-to-month earnings of as much as €50,000—which they finally by no means acquired, the Ministry of the Inside reported Thursday.
When the victims tried to get well their cash and the supposedly promised curiosity—”financially unviable,” in keeping with investigators—they had been unable to take action.
Within the [complaint], the victims said that they’d tried to barter for a 12 months with the corporate’s Spanish managers to acquire the return of the quantities they’d contributed, however that they’d not reached an settlement.
Spanish police have pegged complete Lyoness, myWorld and Cashback World losses in Spain at over 52 million euros.
The financial damages suffered by the plaintiffs exceed €5,000,000, whereas the revenue obtained by the corporate over all its years of operation exceeded €52,000,000 because of the pyramid nature of the rip-off.
Spanish Police launched their myWorld investigation in March 2023. Dubbed “Operation Peldano”, the investigation culminated in Joaquin Garcia de la Brena’s arrest on July twenty third in Madrid.
Lyoness was legally registered in Spain as Lyoness Spain SL in 2011.
In 2018 Norwegian authorities discovered Lyoness to be an “unlawful pyramid scheme”. This prompted Lyoness to vary its title to myWorld just a few months later.
Across the identical time, Lyoness Spain SL modified its title to MWS MyWorld Buyer & Retail Companies Spain SL.
Joaquin Garcia de la Brena has been the Managing Director of Lyoness Spain SL and MWS MyWorld Buyer & Retail Companies Spain SL since 2011.
Presumably as a consequence of native privateness legal guidelines that defend criminals, Spain’s media are referring to de la Brena as “JQB” and “Joaquin”. For me this was sufficient to substantiate de la Brena’s arrest.
Lyoness and myWorld are owned by Austrian nationwide Hubert Freidl (proper).
The rip-off started as an “accounting items” Ponzi scheme in 2003. Right this moment myWorld extra intently resembles a pyramid scheme. That is in step with Spain’s Nationwide Police findings quoted above.
Regardless of a number of international locations certifying Lyoness was a Ponzi scheme and myWorld is a pyramid scheme, up to now Austrian authorities have did not take motion.
Lyoness/myWorld filed for chapter in Europe in 2023. Freidl hasn’t posted on social media since September 2024.
Pending any additional updates on Joaquin Garcia de la Brena’s myWorld felony case, we’ll preserve you posted.
