Last Monday, police in Delhi, India, detained 65 individuals pretending to be U.S. officials and reportedly running a contact center geared at extorting money from American residents.
Call Center Agents Posed as U.S. Government Officials
In a recently published article in The Indian Express, officials stated on Friday that a phony contact center in Hari Nagar was raided, where 65 individuals were detained for allegedly impersonating US government officials and duping Americans.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) Urvija Goel said several callers pretended to be government employees or officials from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Department, the Drug Enforcement Agency, a sheriff officer, the FBI, and the Treasury Department, in making and receiving calls.
Lakhan Jagwani and Vijender Singh Rawat, the call center's owners, have also been detained. They and others allegedly extorted money from US citizens by offering to save them from legal action using unlawful methods such as VOIP calling and caller ID spoofing. Police said they have amassed crores of rupees via deception, according to a published article in India TV.
Scam and Extortion Scheme
Many of the accused were reportedly engaged in calls, warning U.S. residents that they were involved in crimes and would lose their social security number (SSN) and bank accounts, according to the Delhi Police, who raided the call center on Wednesday.
Goel said, "They extorted money from overseas victims in the name of saving them from legal action and arrest. On Wednesday, a police team conducted a raid at the call center in Hari Nagar where many people were engaged in making and receiving international calls," according to a published article in MSN News.
The scam activity started with a pre-recorded robocall ostensibly from a legal department. Victims of the scam were reportedly warned that they would face legal action and that their social security numbers could be suspended. They were also requested to make e-gift card transfers from their bank accounts.
Another Call Center Faces Call Center Busted
Meanwhile, the Delhi Police's South division raided a phony call center in Malviya Nagar and detained five people for defrauding U.S. residents. According to DCP Atul Kumar Thakur, they got information that a phony call center is operating in Panchsheel Vihar. Their crew arrived and discovered three people utilizing the Xlite software to make calls to US citizens.
They would email the victims phony pop-ups and security threats then contact them under the guise of resolving the issue. For their system to be repaired, the victims were required to pay a charge ranging from $100 to $400. Five people were detained on the scene, including the owner Pritpal Singh, HR Manager Kinkini Das, and three callers; 13 systems were also confiscated, according to a published article in India of Today.
Additionally, Indian police said earlier this month that they raided a bogus contact center in Kolkata, where callers reportedly pretended to be Amazon customer service representatives. In July, Kolkata police conducted a search and claimed that 11 individuals were detained in connection with the scam. Kolkata police detained 12 individuals in connection with another call center in a separate operation last month.
