US federal court sentences two Indian nationals to 41 months in prison for robocall scam

A US District Court has sentenced two Indian nationals to 41 months in prison for committing wire fraud and illegally obtaining $1.2 million from victims across the United States.

According to US Attorney Philip R. Selliger, Arushobike Mitra, 29, and Garbita Mitra, 25, were found guilty before US District Judge Esther Salas on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. "These defendants and their conspirators preyed upon some of our most vulnerable citizens, using trickery and threats to coerce them into sending money," Sellinger said at the Newark federal court on Tuesday.

The US attorney added, "Protecting our elderly population from these kinds of deceitful robocall scams is a priority of our office. Those who engage in this kind of elder fraud scheme can expect to face justice." He also credited several US government agencies for investigating the case.

In addition to the prison terms, Judge Salas sentenced Arushobike Mitra and Garbita Mitra to three years of supervised release. The bench also ordered them to pay $835,324 in restitution.

The court documented the case as an international fraud scheme where India-based scam centres used automated robocalls to contact victims across the United States with the intent of defrauding them, particularly senior citizens, reported PTI.

After the scammers established contact with the victims using these automated calls, they tricked them into sending large amounts of money through physical shipments or wire transfers to other members involved in the fraud, including the Mitras.

The scammers used several schemes to persuade victims to send money, like pretending to be officials from government agencies like the Social Security Administration, FBI or DEA. According to the federal prosecutors, they threatened victims with severe legal or financial consequences.

Furthermore, the fraudsters convinced the victims they were from a tech support company, forcing them into providing remote access to their personal computers and confidential information.

The scammer pretends to add money to the victim's bank account. But in reality, they transfer money from another victim's accounts. The victim believes that they received extra money. Then, the scammer instructs the victim to send money via mail or wire transfer to members involved in the scam, such as the Mitras.

(With inputs from agencies)

WATCH WION LIVE HERE