MOSCOW, October 26 - RAPSI. The Moscow Tverskoy District Court has placed two citizens of Nigeria and Cameroon under arrest until December 23 for suspicion of embezzling a minimum of 900 million rubles ($28.2 million) from foreign commercial enterprises under the guise of famous Russian companies, the court's press secretary Alexandra Berezina told the Russian Legal Information Agency (RAPSI/rapsinews.com).

Yesterday the Interior Ministry reported on the detention of nine citizens from Nigeria and Cameroon who are suspected of fraud. The group used fake national passports with names and surnames based on major Russian companies such as Gazprom, Murmansk Shipping Company and Rosneft, said the ministry.

A criminal case on the $28.2 million embezzled from foreign companies operating in the European Union, the United States and Southeast Asia has been initiated.

Investigators found that the criminals posted proposals on the Internet for the sale of various minerals, other goods (rails, electric locomotives and so forth) and gave details and addresses of non-existing companies.

They agreed to supply goods after receiving an obligatory advance payment. But as soon as the funds were transferred, they broke off contact and vanished. All business correspondence was undertaken from computers in rented apartments in Moscow.