KRISHNAGIRI: A new online scam has been unearthed in Krishnagiri with the arrest of a 24-year-old man who duped over 18 people by pretending to be their LPG delivery agent.
C Perumal of Periyapanamutlu near Bargur was arrested on Saturday night by the cybercrime police in Krishnagiri over the complaint of SM Manikandan (26), a doctor at a private hospital.
Dr Manikandan received a call last month at his workplace saying an LPG cylinder was delivered at his house and the caller asked to transfer Rs 950 through digital mode, Krishnagiri cyber crime police told TNIE citing his complaint.
"Dr Manikandan did not confirm by calling his home. Believing the caller's word, he sent Rs 950. Later when he reached home, he was told the cylinder was not delivered. When he tried to contact the caller, the number was not reachable," the police explained.
Dr Manikandan lodged a complaint at the Krishnagiri cybercrime unit in the first week of May. A team led by Krishnagiri cyber crime ADSP S Namasivayam and inspector V Madheswari zeroed in on the suspect, Perumal. Perumal's relative is an LPG delivery agent near Bargur but he had no role in the crime, the police said.
Further probe revealed Perumal had cheated 18 people across Tamil Nadu in places like Ariyalur, Avadi, Dharmapuri, Salem, Krishnagiri etc, employing the same ruse. It is estimated he collected around Rs 20,000 in total from his targets by cheating them of a price of an LPG cylinder.
Perumal took phone numbers from a job portal and contacted people randomly, among them 18 fell into his trap. Some victims lodged complaints in their respective districts. His few attempts to cheat a few had failed, the police source said.
Perumal was remanded on Sunday night.
The cybercrime police advised people to confirm the identity of the caller during their interactions and if they found anything suspicious, calls should be aborted and they should call on the cybercrime helpline number 1930.