8 Rajasthan residents involved in OLX fraud arrested; here is how they cheated

Hyderabad: Eight persons from Rajasthan who were involved in OLX frauds in the Cyberabad commissionerate area were arrested by the Ramgarh police of Alwar district, Rajasthan, on 20 June. They were brought to Cyberabad on a prisoner transit warrant on 10 July.

The eight have been identified as Kasam (27), Babli Khan (19), Samaydeen Jassa (24), Farukh Jom Khan (23), Saikul Khan (22), Sahil Khan (19), Rahul Sahun Khan (19), and Arsad Eisab (26). All are residents of Piproli village under Ramgarh police station in Rajasthan's Alwar district. The police seized 15 mobile phones and 14 SIM cards from the accused. The seized gadgets were analyzed and their involvement in a number of OLX frauds in the Cyberabad commissionerate area established.

Hyderabad resident cheated

On 6 March 2020, D. Srinivas, a resident of Hyderabad, had filed a complaint stating that two days ago he had posted an ad on OLX to sell a cot worth Rs. 16,000. On 5 March he had received several calls from a person who wanted to purchase the cot. The person sent Srinivas a QR code which the latter scanned and lost Rs. 90,000 in four transactions.

The modus operandi

According to the police, the fraudsters would post advertisements for the sale of cars and two-wheelers at cheap rates on OLX and Quikr. They would pose as Army officers to gain the trust of the people. If any person wanted to buy the vehicles or goods, the fraudsters insisted they deposit money for various charges like gate pass charges, shipment charges, insurance charges, and delivery charges. They would then send the customers fake transport receipts with the Indian Army symbols.

They also responded to sellers who posted ads on OLX and Quikr posing as Army/Defence officials. On the pretext of buying the goods, they sent fake QR codes to the sellers and asked them to scan them. Further, they were also involved in sextortion.

Advisory

The Cyberabad police have warned the public against OLX frauds and asked them not to pay any money without first checking the articles. "Do not believe the ads mentioning that the price of cell phone/goods is far below the actual market price. Do not believe an ad on OLX about two-wheelers, four-wheelers, and mobile phones posted by Army officers or CISF personnel," they said.