Man rents shop to set up fake jewellery store to con goldsmith

January 18, 2022 10:47 pm | Updated 10:47 pm IST - Bengaluru

The Magadi Road police on Wednesday arrested a 23-year-old man who allegedly set up a fake jewellery store to cheat a goldsmith of five gold chains valued at over ₹16 lakh. The conman and two of his associates went through extreme lengths to carry out the crime.

“They rented out a shop and paid an advance of ₹25,000 to the shop owner which they stocked with a few pieces of second-hand furniture. It was a meticulous plan,” said a police officer. A team tracked down the conman, Farhan Abbas, to his hometown in Alipura in Gauribidanur talulk of Chickballapur district.

According to the police, Abbas and two of his associates, initially tried to dupe jewellers in Cubbonpet, but failed. They then decided to rent out a shop in Rajajinagar 5th block under the name Vasundhara Jewellers. They paid an advance of ₹25,000 to the shop owner, and fixed a monthly rental of ₹23,000. After they purchased second-hand furniture and did up the interiors of the shop, they approached a goldsmith, Sohidul Mondal and placed an order for five necklaces on December 31.

Mondal took up the job, and on January 6 sent two of his employees toVasundhara Jewellers with the five gold chains and the bill. Abbas and his associates informed the employees that they would get the approval of their customers before paying the bill. “They asked them to wait in the shop, took the chains, and escaped. After waiting for over four hours, the two employees informed Mondal who tried to call Abbas on his phone, only to find that he was not reachable,” said a police officer.

Realising that he had been duped, Mondal approached the police. A special team led by Inspector Srinivas G.T., tracked Mondal down, but his two associates are on the run. “He made the mistake of using his cell phone to make a few calls, and we were able to access the call record details,” said the police.

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