A 30-year-old man was arrested from Assam for allegedly duping a Delhi woman by posing as a representative of a popular online fashion brand on social media, Delhi Police said on Tuesday. The accused, identified as Hizbul Bari, reportedly operated multiple fake business profiles to carry out low-value online scams targeting unsuspecting shoppers.
The victim, Kausar Jahan, came across a social media page claiming to represent a well-known women’s clothing brand. After interacting with someone posing as a brand employee, she was convinced to place an online order worth ₹11,500. She transferred the money but never received the products. When her follow-up messages went unanswered, she realized she had been scammed and filed a complaint on May 23.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (East) Abhishek Dhania said the cyber crime team employed technical surveillance, digital transaction analysis, and intelligence gathering to trace the origin of the scam to Assam. “The accused deliberately kept the fraud amount low, typically below ₹15,000, assuming that victims would not report such small losses,” he added.
Following a swift probe, police conducted a raid on May 24 in Dakshingaon village under Dispur Police Station in coordination with local authorities and apprehended Bari. A mobile phone used to operate the fake account and communicate with victims was recovered. The device contained digital evidence, including chats with multiple victims and access credentials to fraudulent social media pages.
Preliminary investigations suggest that Bari may have duped at least four to five more people in Delhi using similar tactics. Officials also revealed that he was previously employed at a retail store but had left the job six months ago.
Further investigation into the extent of the scam and potential accomplices is underway, police said.
Sources By Agencies