Telephone scammers posing as employees of Minskvodokanal, law enforcement agencies and the National Bank swindled 20,000 rubles from a Minsk resident.
The Minsk resident took the money on credit. A criminal case has been opened.
This was reported by the press service of the Investigative Committee's Minsk office.
How the scammers operated
First, a 23-year-old resident of the Zavodskoy district of Minsk received a call from a supposed representative of Minskvodokanal.
The caller reported the need to replace water meters. To complete the application, it was necessary to provide personal data.
Then a call came in, allegedly from an investigator. He told the Minsk resident that she had disclosed her passport data to fraudsters and that loans would now be issued in her name.
The “National Bank manager” who joined the conversation said that the process of reviewing loan applications had been launched and that help was needed to catch the criminals.
Following the instructions of the fraudsters, the girl took out a loan for 20,000 rubles and transferred the money to a trusted person.
After this, the Minsk resident was told that the operation to catch the criminals would continue in a few days.
After analyzing what had happened, the girl realized that she had become a victim of fraud, contacted the police and helped detain the fraudsters’ courier.
The Minsk resident allegedly took out another loan and went to meet the courier. Law enforcement officers were waiting for him at the appointed place.
The courier, a 39-year-old man, found illegal work on a messenger. A criminal case was opened under Part 4 of Article 209 of the Criminal Code (fraud on an especially large scale).
For reference
Fraud is the theft of someone else's property or the acquisition of rights to someone else's property through deception or abuse of trust.
