Phishing attack: Amritsar resident loses Rs 39K for buying iPhone

Tribune News Service

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Amritsar, April 25

A local resident fell prey to phishing attack after he was duped by swindlers after making a deal on an online market platform. The alleged fraudster posed as an Army man.

In his complaint to the police, Dharuvdeep Singh of the Basant Avenue area said he made a deal to buy iPhone 11, which was listed for sale on an online market platform for Rs42,500. He said after finally bargaining with the seller, who identified himself as Sanjay Singh, an Army personnel through phone call and social media messages, the deal was finalised for Rs39,000. He said he sought documentation regarding his identity and of the mobile phone from him. As he requested some advance payment he transferred an amount of Rs5,000 and then Rs1,000 in his account.

The accused said he was posted in Jalandhar and could not come to Amritsar and would send the mobile through the parcel by the Army courier service, adding that he should pay the remaining amount at that time of delivery of the phone. He said later, he got a call from a courier boy who asked him to come at Maqbool road near Rattan Singh Chowk. He said as he went there, he took the parcel checked the phone and other accessories and then transferred the remaining amount through online payment mode. He said as the money was transferred, the courier boy snatched the parcel from him and fled away. He said he informed Sanjay Singh about this who assured to solve the problem within a week or return the money, but he did not.

Similarly, another complainant Ramandeep Kaur told the police that she was also cheated by a person who identified himself as an Army man on the pretext of selling his scooter. Police authorities said the investigations in the case was on.

On their complaints, the police have booked two Rajasthan residents among three persons under Sections 420 and 120-B of the IPC and Section 66-D of the IT Act in this connection. They were identified as Dev Raj of Alwar (Rajasthan), Intaaz Khan of Bharatpur (Rajasthan) and Aqib Ali of Mevat in Gurgaon.