Taxi Driver Helps Arrest 6.7M-Ruble Scam Courier

On 30 January, in Zabaykalsky Krai, law enforcement officers detained a 34-year-old resident of Saint Petersburg on suspicion of fraud. He was found with 6.7 million rubles (about $67,000) in cash, which had been stolen from a 54-year-old woman from Nerchinsk.

According to preliminary information, the criminals, posing as military commissariat employees, told the victim that her son, who died during the special military operation, had been nominated for an award. Under the guise of processing the medal, they tricked the mother into giving them an SMS code, and then, threatening to «transfer the money to Ukraine,» persuaded her to withdraw all funds from her account and hand them over to a «courier for safekeeping.»

The taxi driver who was transporting him between Chita and Nerchinsk helped detain the suspect. The driver was alarmed by the passenger«s phone conversations, in which he received clear instructions. After the man picked up a package in Nerchinsk and asked to be taken to the airport, the taxi driver reported the passenger»s description and phone number to the police.

The detainee gave a confession, clarifying that he acted on the instructions of anonymous internet curators. The money was returned to the victim, and the suspect was arrested. The taxi driver who provided assistance is planned to be rewarded.