Farmer loses Rs 6.3 lakh in Facebook scam; woman duped over milk

The Story in Brief

A farmer in Rajkot, Gujarat, lost Rs 6.31 lakh after accepting a Facebook friend request from a woman who claimed to be a single mother from Ghana, India Today reports. The woman said she was sending a gift parcel from Germany containing 30,000 euros, gold, and electronics. The farmer later received calls from a fake customs officer demanding duty and fees, and transferred the money in multiple transactions. Police arrested three African nationals, Josephine alias Angel, Mgenjeli Imani Dennis, and Philip Batista Joseph Valentine, from Delhi and Noida. Two were on expired student visas, the third on a short-term visa.

In a separate incident, a 63-year-old retired woman from Rajkot lost Rs 1.91 lakh after complaining about spoiled milk worth Rs 175 ordered from Zepto, Livemint reports. She searched for a customer care number on Google and called a number that connected her to a fraudster who identified himself as Ismail Ansari. He sent an APK file and tricked her into transferring money to various accounts and UPI IDs. Police have registered an FIR under the IT Act and are investigating the UPI IDs and bank accounts.