NRI PULSE STAFF REPORT
San Francisco, CA, May 16, 2025: A former DoorDash delivery driver from Newport Beach, California, has pleaded guilty in a massive fraud scheme that bilked the popular food delivery service out of more than $2.5 million.
Sayee Chaitanya Reddy Devagiri, 30, along with a group of co-conspirators, orchestrated a sophisticated plan to create fake customer and driver accounts, triggering phantom food orders that were never actually placed or delivered. The fraud ran from November 2020 to February 2021 and involved hundreds of transactions completed in mere minutes, all falsely marked as successful deliveries.
The group used inside access to DoorDash’s software systems—allegedly provided by former employee Tyler Thomas Bottenhorn—to assign high-value orders to fake accounts. They manipulated the platform to record the deliveries as completed, generating multiple illegitimate payments from the company.
According to federal prosecutors, the fraud ring included four defendants: Devagiri, Manaswi Mandadapu, Matheus Duarte, and Hari Vamsi Anne. Bottenhorn, who played a key role by providing insider credentials, pleaded guilty in November 2023.
Devagiri is the third person to be convicted in the case. He now faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. His sentencing is scheduled for September 16, 2025.
The fraud came to light after DoorDash’s internal systems detected unusual activity. Since then, the company has taken significant steps to tighten security, including enhanced driver identity verification, weekly real-time selfie checks, and AI-based monitoring to flag fraudulent activity.
Cover photo for representation only.
