2 Indians plead guilty in multi-million-dollar robocall scam

WASHINGTON: Two Indian nationals have pleaded guilty to conspiracy and identity theft in connection with an overseas multi-million dollar robocall scam that defrauded thousands in the US, mostly elderly, the Department of Justice has said. Pradipsinh Parmar, 41, and Sumer Patel, 37, face a maximum sentence of 20 years each in prison for the conspiracy count. Parmar faces an additional mandatory minimum sentence of two years on the aggravated identity theft count, the justice department said in a press statement on Monday. Shehzadkhan Pathan, 39, leader of the conspiracy, operated a call centre in Gujarat’s Ahmedabad from which automated robocalls were made to victims in the US. Pathan pleaded guilty in the case on January 15.

After establishing contact with victims through these automated calls, Pathan and other “closers” at his call centre would coerce, cajole, and trick victims to send bulk cash through physical shipments and electronic money transfers. According to court documents, Parmar collected money on behalf of the robocall conspiracy that victims had sent either by a parcel deliver y carrier or through a wire service.