TELECOM Digest OnLine - Sorted: Seven People Arrested in Cell Phone Fraud Scheme

Seven People Arrested in Cell Phone Fraud Scheme

Yang Lifei (shanghaidaily@telecom-digestorg)
Tue, 31 Oct 2006 14:42:45 -0600

Published on ShanghaiDaily.com (http://www.shanghaidaily.com/)
http://www1.shanghaidaily.com/art/2006/10/31/295791/Seven people held in
cell phone fraud scheme.htm

Yang Lifei

POLICE in the city working with their counterparts in Beijing and
Guangdong Province have detained seven people for allegedly sending
cell phone messages to people in Shanghai, threatening to hurt their
family members if they didn't deposit money into an assigned bank
account.

The Shanghai Public Security Bureau said yesterday that it received
many reports about the fraud scheme on October 19 and 20. Police said
the intended victims were asked to deposit 3,000 yuan (US$375) each
into a bank account, but they don't know how many actually paid the
money.

Zhuang Liqiang, a bureau official, said the short messages usually
read: "You are allowed one day to deposit 3,000 yuan into the
following bank account at the Bank of Agriculture, otherwise your
children will be hurt."

A special task force was set up and within hours investigators managed
to trace down two people suspected of sending the messages.

In cooperation with their counterparts in Guangdong Province, city
police seized two suspects there who were allegedly in charge of
sending the threatening information randomly to Shanghai cell phone
users. Based on their confession, police captured the other five
alleged accomplices in Beijing five days later.

"Suspects took advantage of victim's psychology of money for peace to
commit fraud of small value," Zhuang said.

Copyright 2001-2005 Shanghai Daily Company

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[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: But of course, most of us know exactly
how to deal with such a phone call: If you wish to do so (optional) be
sure to bless the caller, and courteously replace the receiver. PAT]

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