In St. Petersburg, a 12-year-old girl tragically became a victim of fraudsters, resulting in her parents losing 700,000 rubles (approximately $7,600 USD).
On the evening of November 6, the schoolgirl asked her mother for a bank card, stating she wanted to buy ice cream. Shortly after she left, her mother received a distressing notification that 700,000 rubles had been withdrawn from her account. Attempts to contact her daughter were unsuccessful, prompting the mother to immediately alert the police.
Later, the girl`s father also came forward after receiving alarming videos of his daughter sitting in an unknown car, accompanied by demands for a 300,000 ruble ransom. Fortunately, the girl soon made contact herself and clarified her location. She was subsequently picked up by police officers.
The schoolgirl explained that throughout the day on November 6, she had been receiving persistent calls from unknown individuals. These callers eventually managed to convince her to withdraw money from her parents` bank card. Following their instructions, she visited a bank, then boarded a taxi arranged by the fraudsters, and handed the substantial sum to a courier. She was then dropped off on the opposite side of the city, where police ultimately located her.
Authorities have initiated a criminal investigation into the fraud, and efforts are currently underway to identify and apprehend the perpetrators.
In a separate incident highlighting the ongoing battle against scams, an 84-year-old woman in the Vladimir region successfully outsmarted fraudsters. Collaborating with police, she handed a courier a package filled with dummy banknotes totaling 1.7 million rubles, thwarting the scam attempt.
Clement Ashworth 
Barnaby Whitfield