Nikita Tyukalo allegedly lured young women into his camgirl empire with promises of fame and fortune ... only to take control of their accounts and leave them with little to none of the cash they were bringing in.

Our new documentary, "TMZ Studios Presents: Inside the Camgirl Criminal Empire," is now streaming on YouTube ... exposing how Nikita allegedly built a fortune through manipulation, coercion, and exploitation.

According to court documents, obtained by TMZ, Nikita allegedly recruited women by promising big paydays and exposure ... even telling one girlfriend that creating explicit content could help cover her school bills.

But once the women signed on, Nikita allegedly changed their OnlyFans login information ... locking them out of their account and leaving them in the dark about how much money they were making.

And the alleged scheme didn't stop there ... an investigator claims that Nikita used "bot-boosting" to artificially inflate viewership and push his camgirls higher on streaming platforms, all while flaunting luxury cars, properties and lavish parties.

Meanwhile, the women were allegedly streaming nearly around the clock for little to no pay ... until a band of camgirl superfans began digging into the operation and helped bring it crashing down.

"TMZ Studios Presents: Inside the Camgirl Criminal Empire" is now streaming on YouTube.