Surat: A 32-year-old man was arrested by Surat cybercrime police for allegedly cheating buyers through fake social media advertisements offering construction materials at throwaway prices. The accused allegedly collected advance payments for bricks, concrete and other materials before switching off his phone and disappearing.The accused, Narendra Saraswat (32), a resident of Godadara, had started a hardware store, Ozone Hardware, in Surat in 2021. After suffering losses of around Rs 6 lakh and shutting down the business, he allegedly devised an online fraud to make quick money.Police said Saraswat created social media profiles in the name of “Nishant Saxena” and posted advertisements under the banner of JBC Red Bricks, offering bricks and other construction materials at heavily discounted rates to attract customers.After receiving an order, he would contact a genuine brick trader and ask them to deliver the material to the customer’s address. Once the delivery was made, he collected the payment from the customer but did not pay the supplier. He would then switch off his phone, making himself unreachable.According to police, Saraswat used multiple fake SIM cards to carry out the fraud. So far, five complaints have been registered against him through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCCRP) and at police stations in Dumas, Pandesara, Singanpor, Olpad and Vaghai in Dang district. He has allegedly cheated victims of around Rs 1.60 lakh in these cases.Police suspect the fraud is more widespread, as several victims may not have reported the offence.
