The US Justice Department has charged 61 people and entities with involvement in a major India-based scam that targeted thousands of Americans.
The scheme involved Indian call centers, where some workers called American citizens and convinced them to pay their non-existent debts by impersonating Internal Revenue Service (IRS), immigration and other federal officials, the Justice Department said in a statement on Thursday.
Some victims were even offered short-term loans or grants on condition of providing good-faith deposits or payment of a processing fee.
The scammers had stolen more than $300 million from at least 15,000 unsuspecting citizens, the department noted.
The victims’ money was laundered by an American network of criminals who used debit cards or wire transfers under fake identities, the indictment said.
Federal officials arrested 20 people across America on Thursday. Additionally, 32 individuals and five call centers in India were charged…