During the blessed month of Ramadan, people strive even more for generosity, kindness, and charity. At this very moment, some extend a helping hand to the needy, while others send money with prayers for the sick child. But, unfortunately, there are those who abuse these noble feelings for their own benefit.
As a result of monitoring conducted by the Department for Combating Crimes in the Field of Information Technologies of the Main Department of Internal Affairs of the Tashkent region and operational-search measures based on citizens' appeals, another cybercrime was solved. It turned out that a person who had been processing charity videos and embezzling funds collected on behalf of sick children was identified.
During the pre-investigation check, it was established that the suspect, a resident of the Bukhara region, born in 2004, uploaded donation videos posted on the social network "Instagram" on behalf of sick children. After that, she edited the videos, changed the bank card numbers in the original videos, and replaced them with her mother's bank card details.
The most difficult aspect is that the money sent by citizens, who sincerely promised to help, actually went to this card, not to needy children. That is, charity given by people hoping for mercy, trust, and good deeds has been turned into a fraudulent scheme.
According to preliminary investigations, the suspect embezzled a total of 161 million soums through nearly 2,000 transactions from October 2022 until his discovery. It is said that he spent this money on personal needs.
The suspect himself admitted to his actions. According to his comment, after the donation videos appeared on Instagram, he took and edited the finished videos, placed his mother's card, and used the proceeds for his own needs. At the same time, he expressed deep regret for what he had done.
Currently, a criminal case has been initiated under Article 168, Part 3, Clause "g" of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan. Currently, the investigation is ongoing.
This incident reminds us once again of one truth: giving charity is a good deed, but charity should also be done with caution. Because on one side is the child's pain, and on the other side are the unscrupulous ones who want to "do business" with this pain.
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