Elderly Woman Loses 1.5 Million Rubles in Sophisticated Phone Scam

A 65-year-old woman from Amur District has lost a significant sum of money in a phone scam. The fraud involved impersonation, psychological manipulation, and the use of spoofed numbers to deceive her. She only realised the truth when the promised return of her funds failed to materialise. The scam began with a call from someone claiming to represent the Pension Fund. The caller asked for her personal details and an SMS code. Soon after, another group of imposters posing as law enforcement officers contacted her. They accused her of financing terrorism and threatened criminal charges unless she complied with their demands.

The fraudsters convinced her to 'declare' her funds through a fake special department. She was instructed to bring 1.5 million rubles to Moscow and hand it over to a man pretending to be a security official. She borrowed the money from her daughter and gave a courier an envelope filled with cash.

Upon returning home, she received yet another call. This time, the scammers demanded an additional 1 million rubles for verification. Realising she had been tricked, she reported the crime to the police. Authorities have opened a criminal case under Part 4 of Article 159 of the Russian Criminal Code for fraud. The woman’s money remains unrecovered. The investigation is ongoing.