And such schemes are nothing new to Ireland, having been operating here since the 1970s, according to gardai investigating pyramid schemes that have had tongues wagging across Munster over the past year.

Despite minister Micheal Martin's newlyannounced measures to clamp down on pyramid schemes, gardai say that such operations remain difficult to uncover, because the pressure for family and friends to join up is the same pressure that makes it difficult to escape.

Although Cork gardai contend that people in that area have lost thousands of euro in savings to the schemes, there have still been "no formal complaints to the gardai", a local officer told the Sunday Tribune. And while Irish-based pyramid schemes such as one which has been operating in west Cork might be easier to trace, international schemes can be much more difficult to expose. A garda spokesman said the force had learned of a Canadian pyramid scheme that had made its way to a Limerick community, but would not comment further on the company involved.

However, the Sunday Tribune has learned that some Limerick residents were close to the top of that pyramid scheme, which originated in Vancouver, Canada. This multi-level marketing (MLM) company, called Platinum Choice Inc (PCI), had ambitions to expand its business worldwide.

Because MLM is a billion-dollar business in the US, it made sense that PCI chief executive Martin Blackwell, from the UK, would hire a top US lawyer, an expert in pyramid schemes, to help him get around certain laws and restrictions operating in countries such as Ireland, the UK, Canada and elsewhere.

In a letter sent to PCI participants in Limerick, and obtained by the Sunday Tribune, Blackwell said the business would be "100% legal worldwide."

What he didn't take into account were the possible changes in the law that might put a halt to his dreams of creating what he termed "an amazing opportunity." Under the new Consumer Protection Bill introduced by enterprise, trade and employment minister Micheal Martin last Thursday, involvement in pyramid schemes would be deemed illegal, and participants could face a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

Addressing those who questioned the legitimacy of his business, Blackwell said in his letter:

"It annoys me that some people that pass it by [sic] even try and run the business down and spoil it for others, saying it's too good to be true or it's a scam, I feel sorry for these sad people."

It was in 1998 that Blackwell decided to retire from work and consider MLM, after being approached by a major player in the business, Shane Douglas from Excel Telecommunications Inc (ETI), a large US company. Within months, ETI sold out to a company called Vartec, and Blackwell vowed not to become involved with another company. However, the opportunity to make millions was still difficult to pass up. But this time he would "not spend time, stake my reputation or finance a business venture unless all these [legal] conditions were met." Blackwell chose to operate in North America rather than Europe, saying it was the ideal place to set up business. He claims to have spent millions of dollars on websites, a PayPal system, business plans and lawyer fees to make the venture as prosperous as possible.

In the initial stages, potential PCI members were told that all the legalities were in place, which is why Robert Craik, a Vancouver resident, joined the company last year. Speaking about MLM, he told the Sunday Tribune, "It is difficult to know if some founders are legitimate or not. Greed can get the better of people, but that can be seen in any business. When you look at CEOs of many large corporation, they are making millions, while the people below them are making seven or eight dollars an hour."

Craik said the only way for pyramid schemes to succeed was "if people cared about the people below them also making a profit, otherwise corruption was a possibility." He believed that the PCI scheme was "not as high a risk as some pyramid schemes could be." Irish people involved in the scheme were only required to pay 35 into a Uniclear PayPal account each month. This is at odds with schemes operating out of Cork, which had people forking out 1,000 to 10,000 up front and where some members never saw a return on their money, according to Sgt Eddie Fogarty, who was involved in investigating the Cork cases.

Recruiting other members can pose the biggest stress for people involved in pyramid schemes, as many end up pressurising friends, family and work colleagues to join. Blackwell himself claimed to have faced rejection numerous times, and urged PCI members, "Do not take it personally, least of all, do not let it stop you from continuing to recruit.

PCI is not for everyone, not everyone wants to improve their financial well-being or have fun possibly winning the Mega Millions lottery. Do not let rejection get in your way or possibly taking the easiest path and giving up."

All the encouragement from Blackwell worked wonders on PCI members, and he gradually recruited over 2,000 people to take part, according to Craik.

Legalities were always going to be a problem, however, and some of the wording in Blackwell's letter, such as "Fortune knocks but once with this type of opportunity! !" would now be considered illegal under the new Consumer Protection Bill. The "misleading commercial practices" provision of the new bill states that it is a breach of the law to "falsely state that a product will be available for a very limited time. . . in order to elicit an immediate decision and deprive consumers of sufficient opportunity or time to make an informed choice."

Under the new restrictions, the system under which PCI had operated would now be far more limited by the law. "Generally pyramid schemes are a problem around the world, right across the board, " Micheal Martin told the Sunday Tribune this weekend. Because of this, countries other than Ireland have also begun to clamp down on pyramid schemes.

PCI had the potential to spread from Limerick to other parts of Ireland, but quick action was taken by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) to prevent this from happening. An email sent to Limerick residents, from Uniclear PayPal, informed them that PCI was no longer legit. The notice read: "Our offices were raided by the RCMP with a search warrant investigating Platinum Choice International (PCI). They alleged that it is an illegal pyramid scheme and said that PCI was being charged with fraud, money laundering and promoting an illegal pyramid scheme . . . though to our knowledge no charges have been laid."

According to Fogarty, pyramid schemes "will continue to be a struggle to contain." The Sunday Tribune asked Minister Martin about the likelihood of participants volunteering information on schemes if there was a threat of them being prosecuted. "It is still in their interest to come forward, " he replied, "since individuals may get immunity, but that is a matter for the gardai. They will use their discretion."

Still, the prospect of a 'get-rich-quick' scheme is always going to be attractive to some. But for those involved in PCI . . . who, according to Craik, "altogether lost millions" . . . a more traditional route to funding their retirement will now have to be taken.