Kursk Woman Faces 10 Years as Scam Courier

A resident of the Kursk region will be tried in Chita for working as a courier for a group of phone scammers and taking money from two female residents of the regional capital. This was reported on 4 February in the Telegram channel of the Prosecutor«s Office of Zabaykalsky Krai.

The 19-year-old woman from Kursk is charged under Part 4 of Article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (‘Fraud committed on an especially large scale by an organized group’). The Prosecutor«s Office of the Zheleznodorozhny District of Chita has approved the indictment, and the case has been sent to court.

According to the investigation, in September 2025, an 88-year-old resident of Chita was misled by a scammer posing as a telephone operator. He lied about repair work on the phone network and the need to provide passport data. Then he reported that criminals were attempting to withdraw money from the pensioner’s bank account, after which he convinced her to preserve the funds and hand them over using a ‘code word to a trusted person.’ That role was played by a 72-year-old Chita resident, who was similarly deceived. She received 1.6 million rubles (about $17,800 at current rates) from the first victim.

Meanwhile, the girl from the Kursk region found an online ad for easy money and became a courier. She flew to Chita and, also using the ‘code word,’ took from the 72-year-old pensioner the money of both victims — a total of about 1.8 million rubles (about $20,000 at current rates). Returning to Moscow, she transferred the money to the scammers, keeping a reward of 150,000 rubles (about $1,700 at current rates) for herself, after which she was detained by police.

During the investigation, the accused, who is currently in custody, pleaded guilty and fully compensated the deceived Chita women for the damages. Her mobile phone worth 80,000 rubles (about $889 at current rates) has been seized. For the crime she is charged with, she may face up to 10 years in prison.