BENGALURU: An online marble purchase turned into a fraud after a 50-year-old man was duped of Rs 4.59 lakh by fraudsters posing as marble traders from Rajasthan.According to the complaint filed by M Abdul Salam, a resident of Byrasandra in Jayanagar, he came into contact with a woman identified as Anjali around six months ago through an online platform. She introduced herself as the proprietor of Srinath Marbles & Granites, claiming to run a wholesale marble and granite business in Kishangarh, near Ajmer, Rajasthan.The complainant, who was sourcing premium marble for a house under construction in Kerala, was looking for marble priced at around Rs 5,000 per square foot. Instead of visiting the company in person, he communicated with Anjali through photographs and discussions about the quality and price of the marble.To strengthen the complainant’s confidence, Anjali allegedly introduced him to a man identified as Manohar, claiming he was the owner of the company. Manohar reportedly negotiated the price and assured the complainant that the order would be dispatched promptly.The complaint states that the accused later sent photographs purportedly showing 5,000 square feet of marble loaded for delivery. Believing the shipment was genuine, the complainant trusted the accused and transferred a total of Rs 4,59,676 from his bank account to three bank accounts provided by them for the purchase of the granite and marble recently.After the payment, the accused did not respond to Salam. He then realised he had been cheated and approached the police. The South Cyber Crime Police have registered a case under the Information Technology Act and are probing the matter. Efforts are on to freeze the amount from the fraudsters’ mule accounts.
