Thread by @geetiga

JANHIT MEIN JAARI - HOW I ALMOST GOT SCAMMED - #Jamtara Real Life Incident. #threadstory

Today morning at around 09:45 AM, I got a call from 964675397 'FedEx' customer care saying a package attached to my Aadhar ID had been flagged because it contained illegal items. (1/n)

I allegedly sent the package on December 13, 2022, from Mumbai to Taiwan and it contains 3 Kg of textiles, 5 Credit Cards, 11 Passports, 2 pairs of shoes and...wait for it... 800 gm of weed. I haven't sent any such parcel through FedEx, and I don't live in Bombay. (2/n)

I panicked at hearing that the police needed to get involved because it included illegal items. The customer care executive patiently gave me details about the parcel & 'patched' the call to Mumbai Police Cyber Cell. Red flag 1: Why are police on the hot dial with FedEx? (3/n)

My call was transferred to the department SI Naresh Gupta Banerjee (not sure if this is a legit ID), which was shared with me on WhatsApp (red flag 2). He apparently recorded my statement on WhatsApp, as I can't visit Mumbai at such short notice. (4/n)

I shared the details as shared by that customer care executive. One Aparna Krishnaya with Employee ID A15911. (Red flag 3) She was super helpful and seemed like they handle such cases on daily basis. That's how confident she was. (5/n)

The SI Naresh Gupta Banerjee pretended to record my statement about where I work, and how I got to know about the parcel, do I suspect anyone? Has my Aadhar card been stolen or lost? He also said we had received CCTV footage of the warehouse where the parcel was dropped. (6/n)

They can't confirm the identity of the woman who dropped the parcel because she is wearing a mask. Fair enough. I am still talking to him. I could hear noises from wireless in the background. He is talking to his colleague on wireless. It felt believable. Very. (7/n)

He asked his colleague to verify whether my Aadhar Card was being misused elsewhere. I could hear everything that the other person said. Apparently and allegedly, my aadhar is being used to open several bank accounts across SBI, Yes Bank and Citibank. (8/n)

Several millions of dollars are being laundered through these accounts, and your ID is being used for hawala transactions. All this is being orchestrated by someone called Gerold, who has been arrested by Mumbai Police. These screen grabs were shared by the above guy. (9/n)

This is an ongoing investigation, and we need full cooperation from you. At this point, my dad had overheard everything, and he said something was wrong. This was overheard by the posing officer, who asked me not to discuss this with anyone. (red flag 4) (10/n)

He had warned me, in the beginning, to not share this with anyone because if anyone else gets involved in it, they are also complicit in the crime. He sent me the below document, which made me a party to the case and barred me from speaking to anyone. (red flag 5) (11/n)

He then asked me how many bank accounts I had and how much money I had. Have I received any big amount lately? Have you been contacted by anyone to open a bank account? etc He then assured me the case would be closed in 20-30 minutes if I cooperate. (12/n)

The Police in Charge PRAKASH KUMAR GUNTU was made to sound like he is an important guy and is really busy. He also said the same thing: cooperate, and this will be resolved in 20-30 minutes. Almost 150 people are under investigation for this case. (13/n)

He said there are bank employees, corporate employees, desperate people etc all sorts of folks involved. Some are doing it willingly, and some got scammed like you. The only way to resolve this is by 'cooperating' and letting us into your bank accounts. (red fag 6) (14/n)

He said I believe you, but higher authorities don't. You transfer 95499 to us to verify whether your accounts have been compromised and verify account details. We will refund the money in 15 minutes. You remain on the call throughout we assure you of all help. (15/n)

I obviously insisted that I couldn't just transfer money to you and what is the guarantee that you will return that amount. For which he sent me an acknowledgement. Again fake document. (16/n)A

At this point, I was not transferring the money at any cost. He threatened to freeze my accounts for 2-3 years, and there's nothing you can do about it. Either pay or come to Mumbai. I agreed to come to Mumbai, and he hung up the minute he heard that. (17/n)

That was the end of the story, but I am now worried that the scammers have my Aadhar details and are likely to misuse them. I panicked, and I couldn't think rationally. Even when I was surrounded by my family, I ignored their warnings. (18/n)

If I had been alone, I am sure I would have booked an overpriced ticket or transferred that money. Now I know how believable these scams are and anyone can panic. Do not mock or preach them. It must be hard to lose your hard-earned money like this. (19/n)

I am still shaken. I have taken the necessary actions like updating my passwords and all. The WhatsApp number is this 6232181319. If it can happen to someone like me who is always online, reading & watching content about online frauds, I am sure it can happen to anyone. (20/n)

Be calm, alert and seek help. Do not panic, even if you feel like it is a big mess. DO NOT PANIC (like I did). I got saved but not everyone is that lucky. The presence of mind and alertness is the key here. #StaySafe and #stayvigilant. (21/21)

This is an important thread. Please share with people you know so that they know the modus operandi of these scammers. #PleaseRT #longreads #Thread #financialfraud #financialcrime

https://twitter.com/geetiga/status/1612763859168923648?s=20&t=8XLmqdc_d7-URntF8mQX3A