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‘Customised’ con job to retrieve detained goods

Hindustan Times | BySidhartha Roy and Faizan Haider, New Delhi
Aug 25, 2011 11:37 PM IST

If you get a call by someone saying that your baggage, which was confiscated by the customs department, has been released and would be sent to your house under a new scheme, don’t fall for it. This is one of the newest con jobs in the city and many have already fallen prey to it.

If you get a call by someone saying that your baggage, which was confiscated by the customs department, has been released and would be sent to your house under a new scheme, don’t fall for it. This is one of the newest con jobs in the city and many have already fallen prey to it.

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HT Image

This is how the con works — someone will call you posing as a customs official and tell you that your baggage and goods either confiscated or stuck with customs have been released and would be sent to your residence shortly. There is a rider though — you will be asked to deposit a seemingly negligible amount in an account for the process of sending your baggage.

Custom officials claim that a lot of people are receiving calls from these fraudsters. “They called up people randomly and tell them that they will send their baggage that is stuck with the custom department. They ask the person to deposit money in their account for its release,” said a senior customs official who did not wish to be named.

“They call up random numbers with a idea that at least one of the many they call would have travelled abroad recently,” the official said. “Sometimes they also dupe people by just saying that customs department is disposing of confiscated goods at throwaway prices,” he added. The department has been getting complaints from duped passengers regularly. “The numbers from which the calls are made are usually switched off after the money is deposited. We have asked many such victims to lodge a complaint with the police,” he said.

The custom department is now planning to inform the general public by getting an advertisement published in various newspapers. The department has taken up the matter with higher authorities as it is getting many calls from passengers about this ‘scheme’, the officer added.

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Stay updated with all top Cities including, Bengaluru, Delhi, Mumbai and more across India. Stay informed on the latest happenings in World News along with Delhi Election 2025 and Delhi Election Result 2025 Live, New Delhi Election Result Live, Kalkaji Election Result Live at Hindustan Times.
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