"You are suspected of collaborating with the RF": Scammers swindled $18,000 from a pensioner

"You are suspected of collaborating with the RF": Scammers swindled $18,000 from a pensioner

In Kyiv, a 71-year-old woman fell victim to a fraudulent scheme after believing a man who posed as an SSU colonel. The pensioner handed over $18,000 to the scammers, supposedly for verification by the special services.

This was reported by the Kyiv City Prosecutor’s Office.

According to the investigation, the fraudster called the woman and claimed she was suspected of collaborating with the aggressor state for purchasing biologically active supplements of Russian origin.

After a so-called search conducted via video link, the scammers convinced the pensioner to hand over all her savings for verification.

A 79-year-old pensioner came to collect the money from the woman; the investigation established that he believed he was carrying out an assignment from the Security Service of Ukraine.

He then handed the $18,000 to a 23-year-old Kyiv resident, who, according to investigators, transferred the funds to a cryptocurrency account belonging to the organizer of the scam.

Under the procedural supervision of the Desnyanskyi District Prosecutor’s Office, the young man has been notified of suspicion of fraud committed by a prior conspiracy of a group of persons, under martial law, and on a large scale.

The article provides for punishment in the form of imprisonment for a term of three to eight years.

The prosecutor’s office notes that this scheme has recently become more widespread, with elderly people most often falling victim to it.