President Juan Manuel Santos ordered a police investigation into WCM777, a pyramid scheme that promised quick wealth before collapsing in Colombia this fall. Noticias Uno, a Colombian news network, first exposed the operation on October 26th.

The network aired footage from a hotel meeting near Bogota's Eldorado Airport. There, company representatives pitched investors on a system designed to multiply their money in days. Founder Ming Xu, based in Hong Kong, appeared on video explaining the scheme. He framed its appeal around the collapse of the global economy.

During one presentation, speaker Renato Rodriguez addressed 400 attendees. He detailed the purported money math. "Every time you enroll someone is six, six, six, when full forward averaged 396,000 dollars," Rodriguez stated.

WCM777 presented itself as an investment opportunity. It offered five investment levels, each guaranteeing returns exceeding 100% within 100 days. But the company had no actual revenue streams. It functioned as a Ponzi scheme, taking money from new investors to pay existing ones.

The operation also offered referral commissions extending down six levels of recruitment. New investors earned money by bringing in more participants. Those participants, in turn, earned money by recruiting others. This structure created a Ponzi pyramid hybrid.

President Santos responded directly to the news report. He took to Twitter, personally requesting a police investigation into WCM777. A president publicly calling for an inquiry into a specific fraud scheme is rare.

By October 28th, other agencies joined the police. Colombia's Superintendency of Companies and the Financial Supervisory opened their own inquiries into the operation.

WCM777 operates out of Hong Kong. It left the United States earlier, citing problems "abiding by local laws." Colombian police face limited jurisdiction over a company operating thousands of miles away.

The investigations likely focus on local operatives. These are the people, like Rodriguez, who worked the hotel ballrooms, recruited members, and convinced ordinary Colombians their money would triple in weeks. Targeting them before WCM777 could collect thousands of new victims might prevent the worst of a collapse. Such schemes often leave families financially ruined, life savings gone, and little path to recovery.