In just three days, a young woman defrauded five residents of Odessa, causing them over 20,000 hryvnias in damages. The police have charged the suspect, who faces potential imprisonment.

At the end of March, five local residents reported to Police Station No. 2 of the Odessa District Police Department about missing funds from their bank accounts.

During the investigation, officers identified a 23-year-old woman from Odessa as the suspect.

She created a fake website for parking payments in Odessa and posted a QR code near a parking spot in the Peresyp district. The site closely resembled the official one but required users to input their bank card numbers, CVV codes, and passwords for access.

By scanning the QR code, citizens entered their confidential information, which was captured by the fraudster. Using this data, she accessed the victims' banking apps and transferred money to her own accounts. The amounts varied from 4,000 to 5,100 hryvnias. The total loss amounted to 22,700 hryvnias, which the fraudster spent on personal expenses.

The police seized her mobile phone, laptop, and bank card, which she used for her schemes.

“After gathering sufficient evidence, investigators charged the suspect under Part 4 of Article 190 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, which pertains to obtaining someone else's property through deception. The accused admitted her guilt and has already compensated the victims for their losses. According to current legislation, the maximum penalty she faces is eight years of imprisonment,” stated Valentina Istomina, head of the investigative unit of the police department.

We urge residents and guests of Odessa: cashless parking payments involve scanning a QR code on the road sign and authorizing through the Diia app or your banking app. Entering bank card numbers, CVV codes, usernames, or passwords is not required on the official website. Be cautious, keep your confidential data private, and do not allow fraudsters to deceive you.

Source: https://od.npu.gov.ua/news/stvoryla-feikovyi-sait-oplaty-parkuvannia-aby-zavolodity-hroshyma-vodiiv-v-odesi-politseiski-vykryly-shakhraisku-skhemu-23-richnoi-divchyny