Indian-American Arrested In US for $13 Million Technical Support Scam Targeting 7,000 Victims

An Indian-American has been arrested in New Jersey for his involvement in a technical support scam.

The scam targeted over 7,000 victims and defrauded them of more than $13 million. This announcement was made by a US Attorney on Thursday (31 August).

Manoj Yadav, the individual charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, appeared before US Magistrate Judge José R Almonte in Newark federal court.

According to US Attorney Philip R Sellinger, the defendant and his accomplices deceived their victims by posing as a legitimate technology support company affiliated with a major software company.

The alleged scammers claimed to offer technical support for the software company's popular accounting software.

However, they charged victims excessive fees for support services that were not authorised by the software company.

According to special agent in-charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), United States' federal law enforcement agency, James E Dennehy, it is alleged that Manoj Yadav deceived software users by making them pay for services that should have been included for free with their initial purchase.

A screenshot from the FBI complaint against Manoj Yadav shows evidence of the alleged wrongdoing.

If convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, Yadav could face a maximum prison sentence of 20 years and a fine of $ 250,000 or twice the gross profit or loss caused by the offence, whichever is greater.

Special agent Dennehy acknowledges the shocking amount of money Yadav is accused of stealing from his victims and the significant number of victims involved.

He emphasised the rise in tech support scams and urges anyone who believes they have been targeted to contact the FBI for assistance.

From 2017 to 2023, Yadav and his co-conspirators, many of whom were based in India, engaged in fraudulent activities by presenting themselves as a technology support company associated with a prominent US business and accounting software company.

This software company developed and sold a widely used accounting software product, which the fraudsters falsely claimed to be affiliated with.

Under various deceitful business names such as 'Phebs Software Services LLC,' 'Phebs Software Services,' 'PN Bookkeeping Services,' 'Phebbs Consulting,' 'Quickbooks Tech Assist,' 'Quickbook US,' 'Quickbooks Accounting,' and 'Quickbooks Support Team,' the perpetrators carried out their operations.

According to court documents, the scheme involved the conspirators contacting victims under the pretense of providing technical assistance for issues they encountered with the accounting software.

Once the victims sought help from the fraudsters, they would either be charged exorbitant fees or forced to pay additional subscription fees.

It is important to note that all the services offered by the fraudsters were completely fraudulent.

Customers who directly contacted the legitimate software company would not incur any additional charges, and the software company had never authorised Yadav or his co-conspirators to act on its behalf or charge any fees.

Yadav is accused of actively participating in the scheme by charging the victims for fake technology support services. He then transferred millions of dollars from these victims to his co-conspirators.

The funds were obtained through the fraudulent Phebs Software Services, LLC, which Yadav had established.