QR code fraud: Fake army man dupes Chandigarh resident of ₹20,000

Posing as an army man, the fraudster approached the Chandigarh resident, saying he was looking for a house on rent

A fraudster duped a Sector 43 resident of ₹20,000 by posing as an army man looking for a house on rent.

The fraudster claimed that he will pay one month’s rent in advance, along with the security fee, through an online transaction and sent a QR code to the victim on his mobile phone (HT)

The victim, Parveen Kumar, told the police that he gave an advertisement for renting his house in Sector 45. In response, he received a call from a man identifying himself as Jai Kishan, a sepoy in the Indian Army, who had been transferred to Chandigarh and needed a house on rent.

The caller claimed that he will pay one month’s rent in advance, along with the security fee, through an online transaction and sent a QR code to Kumar on his mobile phone. As Praveen scanned the code, ₹20,000 were deducted from his bank account. The caller then off the grid, Kumar alleged.

On his complaint, police booked the accused under Sections 419 (cheating by personation), 420 (cheating) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code at the Sector 36 police station, and launched a probe to arrest him.