Chappaqua Man Pleads Guilty to Role in $20M Cyber Scheme
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A Chappaqua man arrested two years ago for helping to swindle $20 million from a composer and heir to an oilfield services fortune through his Mount Kisco computer store pleaded guilty on Wednesday.
Vickram Bedi , 38, of 38 Hollow Oak Rd., entered a guilty plea to one count of first-degree grand larceny. Helga Invarsdottir, 41, of the same address, also pleaded guilty in December 2010 to the same charge as well as second-degree grand larceny.
Over a six-year period, the pair concocted wild stories to help them steal money from Roger Davidson through their business, Datalink Computer Products, Inc., located at 165-175 Main St. The victim is a noted pianist and composer and the great-grandson and great grandnephew of the two brothers who founded Schlumberger Ltd., a multinational oilfield services company headquartered in Houston.
Davidson brought his computer into Datalink in August 2004 when it developed a virus in order to save important documents, photos and music that he stored, according to the Westchester County District Attorney’s office.
Bedi confirmed to Davidson that his computer had a virus, which the defendant claimed was extremely virulent and had also damaged Datalink’s computers.
He also told Davidson that he had the ability to track down the source of the virus that specifically targeted the victim’s computer and that he and his family were in grave danger. As a result, Bedi convinced him to begin paying for computer data retrieval and security and also physical protection, said a spokesman for District Attorney Janet DiFiore.
Davidson was advised by Bedi that the source of the virus was in a remote village in Honduras. Bedi informed him that the hard drive was the source of the worm that had invaded the computer and told the victim that Bedi’s uncle, who he contended is an officer in the Indian military, flew to Honduras in an Indian military aircraft during a reconnaissance mission and obtained the hard drive.
Bedi also advised Davidson that the CIA was watching him.
Over this period Datalink charged the victim’s American Express card accounts on a continual monthly basis.
“This defendant, over a six-year period, preyed upon, schemed and manipulated his victim in ways that epitomize a cold calculating con man,” District Attorney Janet DiFiore said in a statement released after Bedi’s guilty plea. “The systematic method with which the defendant continued the larceny over a period of years, along with the sizable amount of money that was stolen, was nothing short of Machiavellian.”
In July 2010, the Harrison Police Department became involved when interested parties contacted them regarding a civil matter relating to the investigation. Harrison police and the district attorney’s Organized Crime Bureau were the primary investigative agencies, with assistance from Mount Kisco and New Castle police. Bedi and Invarsdottir were arrested a month later at their home by Harrison police as they were preparing to flee the country.
Bedi will be sentenced on Jan. 22. He faces eight and one-third to 25 years in state prison. Invarsdottir will be sentenced on Jan. 29.
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
