Chinese police bust big pyramid scheme

TAIYUAN - Five people have been apprehended for organizing and leading a pyramid scheme involving more than 70 million yuan (around $10 million), local authorities said Monday.

Two suspects were caught in late December and another three turned themselves in last week, according to the public security department of North China's Shanxi province.

The police investigation of this pyramid scheme came shortly after police received a tipoff in December.

The investigation showed that the suspects set up sub-branches for a pyramid selling organization in various counties of Shanxi between February 2017 and December 2018.

They encouraged more than 5,000 investors to sign up, promising high profits if they purchased their bonds and coaxed others into the scheme.

Further investigation is underway.