27-Year-Old Woman Conducts Theft Using Computer Technology

The investigation into a criminal case regarding theft committed using computer technology has been completed by the Cybercrime and High Technology Crimes Investigation Department of the Special Investigative Service of the Republic of Armenia.

As a result of extensive investigative and other procedural actions conducted during the pre-trial proceedings, a range of circumstances have been established, including the identity of the alleged perpetrator, a 27-year-old resident of Yerevan born in 1992, the mechanism of the thefts, and the victims, including 12 individuals and one legal entity.

According to the data obtained during the investigation, the young woman engaged in correspondence through her personal page registered with someone else’s details on the social networking site “Facebook,” with a user of the same site. Under the pretext of obtaining a loan in her mother’s name, with the intention of committing theft, she deceitfully obtained photographs of the identification card of the user's mother. Subsequently, on February 26, 2019, she accessed a banking application of one of the banks in Armenia using her own mobile phone and utilized the identification card details of another person to finalize a loan agreement for 1,000,000 AMD in her mother’s name. A few days later, she received a bank card registered with someone else's information and entirely withdrew the money available in it.

Other manifestations of the crime have also been uncovered during the investigation. Notably, it was discovered that from March 6, 2019, to May 15, 2019, the 27-year-old woman created a fake page on the internet, advertising loans under attractive conditions titled “Provision of Funds.” Various individuals contacted her after seeing the advertisement.

Following that, she inquired about the creditworthiness of those who sent her messages, targeting individuals with positive credit histories under the pretext of offering online loans. By exploiting the trust of the applicants, she deceitfully obtained copies of their passports or identification cards for the purpose of securing loans through a mobile application from one of the banks.

According to the factual data collected during the investigation, the 27-year-old woman entered into credit agreements with the bank on behalf of 11 individuals through the aforementioned application, resulting in a total of 8,000,000 AMD in loans being issued. The investigation revealed that part of these loans was transferred to a bank account opened under another person’s name but used by her, while some were transferred to her own bank card connected to her mother’s name, fraudulently obtaining a total of 7,291,926.6 AMD from the respective bank account.

Based on the combination of evidence obtained during the pre-trial proceedings, the 27-year-old woman has been charged under Article 181, Part 2, Clause 2, and Article 181, Part 3, Clause 1 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia. The measure of restraint chosen against her is a signature, ensuring she does not leave.

The damage caused has been fully restored during the investigation. The conclusion of the investigation has been announced, and the criminal case has been sent to court with an indictment.

Note: The suspect or accused in the alleged crime is presumed innocent until proven guilty in accordance with the procedures established by the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Armenia, by a court judgment that has entered into legal force.