A 24-year-old lawyer who is employed at a law company in south Mumbai reportedly lost 44,782 in a series of transactions to a con artist who fooled the victim into thinking he was the proprietor of a wine shop and delivered two bottles of beer.
The victim, who was from Gurugram, arrived in Mumbai two months ago and resided in Colaba, according to the Police. On October 26, he searched online for nearby wine shops where he could buy alcohol. He discovered the mobile number of a neighbouring store. The phone was never answered when the lawyer dialled the number. But after a short while, he got a call from the number asking him to place an order over WhatsApp on the same number. (Also Read: Girl consumes disinfectant from police station’s washroom, where she was held for killing boyfriend)
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The fraud claimed that only orders for at least two bottles were accepted when the lawyer tried to order one beer bottle. The victim placed a 360 rupee order for 2 beer bottles. According to a police official, the accused wanted an additional Rs 30 to cover delivery costs and sent a QR code to complete the payment over WhatsApp.
Later, the scammer contacted the victim again and asked him to input Rs 4,999 to create a bill on a payment app, assuring him that the money wouldn't be taken. The victim followed the instructions twice, resulting in deductions of Rs. 99 and Rs. 4,999 from his account. The offender asked the victim to scan the QR code when he questioned why the money had been taken out in order to refund Rs. 5,497.
The victim followed the advice, and another Rs. 5,497 was taken out of his account. After 8 transactions totaling Rs. 44,782 were made from the lawyer's bank account, he realised he had been scammed. Then, in vain, he started calling the accused. A police officer reported that the scam later disabled the lawyer's phone number. The victim subsequently went to the Cuffe Parade police and reported the unnamed individual. In order to identify the offender, the police have been assisted by the cyber police.
