Indian American Arrested For Running Tech Support Scam, Defrauds Victims Of $13 Million

Around 7,000 victims were defrauded of a total of $13 million due to Manoj Yadav's technology support scam.

Manoj Yadav participated in the scheme by charging the victims for the fraudulent technology support services and funnelling millions of dollars.

Source : Representational Image/Getty

An Indian American was arrested in New Jersey for being a part of a technical support scam that targeted more than 7,000 victims. The defendant and his conspirators defrauded the victims of over $13 million, a US attorney said on Tuesday. According to PTI, the defendant, Manoj Yadav who appeared before US Magistrate Judge José R. Almonte in Newark federal court has been charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. It carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $2,50,000 or twice the gross profit or loss caused by the offence, whichever is greatest.

US Attorney Philip R Sellinger said that Yadav and his conspirators allegedly misled numerous victims into thinking that they were a legitimate technology support company affiliated with a major software company. Yadav lied to the software users and forced them for services that usually come for free with their initial purchase, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Special Agent in Charge James E Dennehy was reported as saying. 

Dennehy said that the amount Yadav is accused of stealing from his victims and the number of victims may seem shocking, but there has been a rise in all types of tech support scams. He advised people who think they are victims to contact the FBI. 

Federal prosecutors said that between 2017 and 2023 Yadav and his conspirators, many of whom are in India, pretended to be a technology support company affiliated with a US business and accounting software company that developed and sold a widely used accounting software product. 

They had various fraudulent business names, “Phebs Software Services, LLC,” “Phebs Software Services,” “PN Bookkeeping Services”, among others. Conspirators would contact victims under the guise of fixing technical issues in the software. After fixing the issue they would charge the victims exorbitant fees or additional subscription fees. However, these services do not actually cost any additional money for customers who contacted the actual software company. 

As per PTI, Yadav participated in the scheme by charging the victims for the fraudulent technology support services and funnelling millions of dollars. He sent his conspirators over $ 13 million in funds which he obtained from the victims and kept around 17 percent.

It is alleged that he fraudulently obtained these funds through the Phebs Software Services, LLC, which he himself formed. Yadav also used the entity names to falsely hold himself out to banks and victim customers as an accounting company legitimately affiliated with the software company to prevent chargebacks, Better Business Bureau complaints, and the closure of bank accounts.