Security guard duped of ₹80K on pretext of getting a job

A 40-year-old man was duped of ₹80,000 by an unidentified person under the pretext of getting him a job in Dubai as a security guard in a multinational company, said the police on Sunday

A 40-year-old man was duped of ₹80,000 by an unidentified person under the pretext of getting him a job in Dubai as a security guard in a multinational company, said the police on Sunday. Although the complaint was lodged by the victim, Mohammad Sabbir, a resident of Baldev Nagar, in August last year, the case was filed on Saturday after initial investigation.

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The police said Sabbir, who saw a job posting on an online portal in August, last year for the position of a security guard in a multinational company, called on the phone number provided, said the police. According to the police, Sabbir was looking for a career abroad and had applied for a job in a multinational company in other countries in the past. He was interviewed over the phone and was asked to submit documents of educational qualifications, past experience and salary slips from his previous jobs.

The victim said, within half-an-hour, he received another call from a person named Vijay Kumar, who allegedly posed as the head of a department of a multinational company in Dubai. The man said that he was presently in based in his home town in Panipat in Haryana. The suspect told the victim that since the profile being sought was that of a senior guard position, the portal would provide him with a relationship manager to take care of the hiring process, for which charges would be applicable. He further said that there were as many as four levels of services to choose from — starting from the basic level to the priority level, said the police.

According to the police, the victim first paid ₹5,000 for the basic level as registration fee, and then proceeded to pay for all the subsequent levels, in instalments of ₹20,000. All the transactions were carried out within a week.

Karan Goel, assistant commissioner of police (DLF), said that the victim transferred the amount in August last through his debit cards. “The suspect had promised that the amount will be refunded in his bank account after 24 hours of his placement. The executive had also said that they will only deduct 10% of the total amount,” he said. Goel added that after the amount was transferred, the victim did not receive any invoice for the same.

“Vijay Kumar had told me that the invoice will be generated within 24 hours, but I did not receive any calls. I tried calling him repeatedly but he did not receive my calls. When I tried calling from a different number, he picked my call and asked for another day to send the invoice. I thought that the man was genuine, as he made himself sound convincing. Later, he blocked my numbers and accounts from all social media platforms.” Sabbir Singh.

The suspect had promised to generate the interview ID within 48 hours but when the victim again sent an email, it bounced back and all numbers were found to be switched off.

The victim then approached the police after he realised that he had been duped. A case under sections 420 (cheating) of the IPC and section 66 D of the IT Act was filed at the cyber police station after six months, said the police.