Ajman: Ajman Police have arrested 19 members of a gang suspected of running a telemarketing fake prize scam.
On Sunday, police said the suspects were caught in a raid at their hideout, which was used by the con men to call people to inform them to transfer money in return for valuable prizes.
The fraudsters would ask for the targeted victims’ bank account details and passwords so they could deposit their “grand prize Dh200,000” amount in the accounts, said Major Mohammad Yafoor Al Ghafli, deputy director of CID at Ajman Police.
The fraudsters would then manipulate the information to steal the money. The suspects, all Asians, lured the victims by informing them that they were calling from a telecommunication service provider.
Police formed a team after receiving a tipoff from one of the victims in Ajman and tracked down the suspects and managed to arrest all of them.
The suspects had rented a house in the emirate from where they were carrying out the crime. During the raid, police found a large number of SIM cards and mobile phones that were used by them.
Investigation revealed that the suspects corrupted the SIM cards with which they had called the victims in order to avoid police scrutiny.
The suspects have been referred to the public prosecution.
Ajman Police urged all community members to cooperate with security agencies and report any suspicious acts or crimes on 999.
