Indian-origin persons among 15 indicted in US call centre scam

Washington, Sep 8  Fifteen people, including some of Indian-origin, and five India-based call centres have been indicted in a multi-million call centre scam that victimized thousands of people in the US.

Seven people were arrested on Thursday in the US for their alleged involvement in the scam that victimized over 2,000 people, resulting in over $5.5 million in losses, the US Justice Department said in a press release on Friday. 

Seven defendants and five call centres in India were also charged for their alleged involvement, officials said.

Mohamed Kazim Momin, Palak Kumar Patel, Mohammed Sozab Momin, Devin Bradford Pope, Nicholas Alezander Deane, Drue Kyle Riggins and Jantz Parrish Miller were arraigned before US Magistrate Judge Janet F. King.

"Internal Revenue Service (federal tax agency) and payday loan phone schemes seek to profit by exploiting US citizens, including the most vulnerable members of our community," said US Attorney Byung J. Pak. 

"This indictment and yesterday's arrests demonstrate our commitment to identifying and prosecuting those who hide behind these types of phone scams."

"This indictment makes clear that the IRS impersonation scam has risen to a new level, with indictments against five call centres and seven co-conspirators in India who allegedly directed their employees to participate in the scam," said J. Russell George, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. 

The indictment alleged that the defendants were involved in a "sophisticated scheme organized by co-conspirators in India, including a network of call centres in Ahmedabad".