KOCHI: A probe has been launched after a Kochi native complained that he was cheated by a Delhi-based car dealer who allegedly sold him a luxury vehicle smuggled from Bhutan, police said on Monday.
The complainant came to know about the fraud following ‘Operation Numkhor’ conducted by the Customs department last year against illegal smuggling of luxury vehicles from Bhutan, which led to the seizure of several vehicles, they said.
The Ernakulam Central Police registered a cheating case on Sunday following a complaint from a 22-year-old man.
According to the FIR, the case has been registered against used car dealer Rohit Bedi, a resident of Lajpat Nagar in New Delhi.
The FIR said the complainant was cheated after Bedi claimed that a Toyota Land Cruiser, purportedly used by the Indian Embassy in Bhutan, was available for sale for Rs 14 lakh.
As per the agreement, the complainant paid Rs 50,000 in cash on June 29, 2024, and transferred Rs 4.5 lakh through a bank account on July 1, 2024, the FIR said.
Later, a friend of the complainant who reached New Delhi handed over Rs 5 lakh in cash, while Rs 4 lakh was transferred through a bank account, it said.
However, after the purchase, the complainant realised that the vehicle had been smuggled from Bhutan and illegally re-registered in Himachal Pradesh before being sold to him, the FIR said.
According to Police officials at Ernakulam Central Police Station, the Toyota Land Cruiser was also seized by Customs under Operation Numkhor after its illegal import was discovered.
The vehicle was later returned to the complainant, following which he decided to take legal action against the dealer for cheating him.
Police said they would seek details from Customs on the modus operandi used in the illegal import and sale of vehicles, and would seek their assistance in identifying others involved in the racket.
Operation Numkhor had exposed large-scale illegal activities involving the smuggling of luxury vehicles, mostly SUVs, from Bhutan, and several such vehicles, including those belonging to film actors, were seized during the operation, police said.
This is the first case registered by police in the state in connection with the illegal import of vehicles from Bhutan following the Customs operation, an official said.