In a revelation that has sent shockwaves across communities, an NRI man was arrested in New Jersey for orchestrating a tech scam that allegedly siphoned off a staggering $13 million. The announcement came from US Attorney Philip R. Sellinger this Thursday.
The scam, which has been operational since 2017, has left a trail of more than 7,000 victims in its wake. The primary targets were the elderly and small businesses, according to reports from Moneycontrol.
Manoj Yadav, the 40-year-old accused, has been charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
- He faced the charges before US Magistrate Judge Jos R. Almonte in Newark Federal Court.
- The prosecution alleges that Yadav and his co-conspirators, mostly based in India, posed as a technology support company affiliated with a major US business and accounting software company.
The modus operandi was deceptively simple yet devastatingly effective. The accused would contact victims, claiming to offer technical support for popular accounting software. After supposedly resolving the issues, they would then charge exorbitant fees for services that were not authorized by the software company. One elderly victim was reportedly defrauded of $9,010.
The company operated under various names, including Phebs Software Services, PN Bookkeeping Services, Phebbs Consulting, Quickbooks Tech Assist, Quickbook US, Quickbooks Accounting, and Quickbooks Support Team. The FBI has accused Yadav of lying to customers and charging them for services that should have been free with the initial software purchase.
FBI Special Agent in charge, James E. Dennehy, expressed concern over the rising trend of tech support scams. “The fraudsters are pretty savvy in how they con money out of people, even those of us who think we’re smart enough not to fall for it,” he warned.
The U.S. Attorney’s office has further accused Yadav of transferring $13 million (Rs 107.5 crore) to his co-conspirators, retaining 17% of the funds for himself. These funds were fraudulently obtained through Phebs Software Services, LLC, another entity formed by Yadav.
While the arrest of Manoj Yadav is a significant step in cracking down on tech scams, it also serves as a grim reminder of the vulnerabilities that exist in our increasingly digital world. If you think you’re a victim of such a scam, the FBI urges you to come forward.
What are your experiences with tech scams? Have you or someone you know fallen victim to such schemes?
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