Fraudster uses UAE expat's ID card, passport in low rents scam

Sharjah - He was jailed after WhatsApp chat proved that he had defrauded the Pakistani man.

The Sharjah Criminal Court has sentenced a Pakistani national to six months in jail to be followed by deportation for duping a man of his money, forging documents and using the victim's ID as well as passport to fleece others.
The case came to light after the Al Gharb Police Station received a complaint lodged by a 27-year-old Pakistani man who works as an electronic communications technician.
The complainant told the police that he came across an announcement on an online site that advertises apartments available on low rents. He found an accommodation situated in Al-Batinah area in Sharjah which suited his budget. On being contacted, the defendant asked him to pay Dh2,500 and also send him his passport and UAE ID card so he can issue him the lease contract. 
The victim handed over the money to the fraudster after getting the contract papers, which he later discovered were forged. The conman told him that he would give him the keys of the apartment after an hour and asked him to wait at the location. 
The complainant told the court that when he went to check out the flat, he was shocked to find that the apartment was occupied by others. He tried to contact the man many times but his phone remained switched off.
After a few days, he was surprised when people started calling him, asking him to rent out the apartment to them.
The fraudster had posed as the technician by using his ID card and passport, while making people believe that he was the owner of the flat and fleeced them of cash.
During the police and court hearing, the accused - who resides in Abu Dhabi - denied the charge and feigned ignorance about the case. However, evidence proved the man defrauded the victim after he showed the court the correspondence the two had via WhatsApp.
The correspondence revealed how the conman had trapped the complainant and extracted money from him.

• Sharjah