Overseas scammers posing as bank officials and stockbrokers hired a group of Victorians to help trick victims out of $14 million.
Victoria Police have identified 30 Australians swindled in the scam, including a 56-year-old Canberra woman who transferred $1.6 million to a fake account in February and an 86-year-old Melbourne woman who lost $400,000 in 2023.
Seven Victorians are accused of opening and managing fraudulent local businesses and bank accounts to make the scam look legitimate.
The international scammers then used the local accounts to trick victims into thinking they were depositing money into fixed-term deposits or buying shares.
Police say the Victorian-based mules moved more than $14 million offshore between August 2022 and February 2024, receiving commissions in return.
Six men aged 44 to 51 and a 45-year-old woman have been charged in the past nine months with dealing with proceeds of crime offences.
Two of the group have been remanded in custody while the rest are on bail or charged on summons.
They will appear in Melbourne Magistrates Court on September 26.
