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A janitor is standing trial for allegedly obtaining access to a woman’s online banking account and transferring more than BD2,000 to himself. Prosecutors accused the 26-year-old worker of colluding with a yet-to-be-identified individual to steal the amount from the unsuspecting victim in February 2024.
The alleged Bahraini victim testified that she received a phone call from a woman who claimed to work for BenefitPay and said that she needed to update her account. The unknown woman asked for the victim’s one-time password (OTP), which was sent to her in a text message from the payment provider.
Using the OTP, the scammers were allegedly able to take over her BenefitPay account and transfer her funds to themselves.
The Pakistani cleaner was charged with using the victim’s electronic signature – issued by her bank and BenefitPay – to unlawfully withdraw money from her account. He was also charged with co-operating with an unknown accomplice to steal the money through deception, by gaining unauthorised access to a digital system – her bank account – to make several wire transfers to his own accounts.
According to the charges, he sent himself BD1,030, which he then withdrew at an ATM, and also transferred an additional 9,913 Emirati dirhams (BD1,018) to himself.
A policeman at the Interior Ministry’s Cybercrimes Directorate received a call from an employee at BenefitPay, reporting about the stolen OTP and cash.
The bank account registered under the defendant’s name was confirmed to have been opened by him remotely, after passing digital security checks required to activate the account.
An official from the bank’s Digital Channel Management department testified that recorded evidence showed the defendant using the ‘live selfie’ feature, which allows individuals opening new accounts to verify their identity. He had also provided his CPR card as part of the process.
After opening the account, he reportedly allowed other people to use it.
During questioning by the Public Prosecution, he admitted to being the man shown in the live photograph. Case files indicate that he works as a cleaner at a restaurant in Adliya, and lives in Umm Al Hassam.
The trial continues.
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