Mumbai: Youth loses Rs 1.41L to cyber-fraudster offering 'buy one, get one free' iPhone offer

Mumbai: A 20-year-old Borivali resident fell prey to a cyber-fraud and lost Rs 1.41 lakh as he attempted to purchase an iPhone 13 Pro Max for Rs 40,000 through a fake advertisement.

According to the Borivali police, on August 20, the complainant came across an advertisement while using his Instagram wherein the iPhone 13 was being offered for free along with the iPhone 13 Pro Max for Rs 40,000.

The victim inquired about that offer to check if the product was original. A WhatsApp link was sent to the victim, which directed him to one SJ Singh, who induced the victim to pay Rs 1.41 lakh through online transfer on various pretexts such as GST and security deposit, police said.

When the accused demanded more than Rs 38,000 the victim found something irregular and asked the fraudster either to deliver his phone or return his money. When the victim got no further response from Singh and having realised that he had been duped, he approached the police and got a complaint lodged on Wednesday. 

The police have registered a case on charges of cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property and cheating by personation by using computer resources.

"We request social media users not to fall prey to such unbelievable offers circulated on Instagram and Facebook by known people. This may be a fraud. One should not click on any suspicious links or share any bank account details with any unknown person," said a police officer."