Mumbai: A 28-year-old marketing manager in a private company, recently became the latest victim of cybercrime, losing Rs2 lakh in a fraudulent rental scheme. According to the Marine Drive police, the complainant Abhinav Singh Sidhu, was searching for a rental property and stumbled upon the website www.nobroker.in through Google. He connected with a person named Vipul Jain through the website, who claimed to have a flat in Andheri available for rent.
Jain instructed Sidhu to pay a visiting fee of Rs2000 to view the flat. After transferring the money, Sidhu received a call from Mahesh Kapadneesh, who asked for his Aadhar card and an online payment of Rs8,099 for supposed ‘society verification,’ which Sidhu promptly paid.
Victim Was Asked To Send Different Amounts Multiple Times
When Kapadneesh claimed the money hadn't been received, he asked Sidhu for Rs21,000 as rent, followed by an additional Rs16,900, both of which Sidhu paid through Google Pay. Additionally, Sidhu handed over Rs50,000 as a security deposit.
The fraudulent duo continued extracting money from Sidhu, reaching a total of Rs2 lakh, using various excuses. Even after the payments, they demanded more funds, alleging non-receipt. When Sidhu sought to visit the flat post-deposits, Jain and Kapadneesh assured him of a refund.
However, after depositing the money, both perpetrators ceased communication, ignoring Sidhu’s calls and eventually turning off their phones. Realising he had been deceived, Sidhu promptly filed a police complaint.
