BENGALURU, 19 DEC

In a shocking case of rental fraud, 12 house-hunters in the City have allegedly lost a combined total of Rs 58 lakh to a scammer posing as a property owner. The fraudulent activities reportedly occurred through the popular online brokerage platform, NoBroker, raising serious concerns over the safety of online property transactions.

Victims from various states claimed that the accused, identified as Girish, posted a fake property listing for a house in Cholanagar, within the Hebbal police station limits. Enticed by an attractive deal, multiple prospective tenants contacted him. Girish allegedly demanded advance payments ranging from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 6 lakh per individual, promising to lease the property at a competitive rate. It wasn't until they collectively transferred over Rs 58 lakh that they realised they had been conned.

The victims further asserted that Girish employed calculated tactics to mislead them. He allegedly cited renovation work and tenant disputes as excuses for delays in finalising lease agreements. When pressed for refunds, he provided cheques that later bounced due to mismatched signatures or incorrect account holder names.

To manipulate his victims further, Girish reportedly fabricated personal tragedies, such as the death of his father, to evoke sympathy and gain extra time.

A 30-year-old Mumbai-based techie, who recently landed a high-paying job in Bengaluru, revealed he lost Rs 4.8 lakh after responding to Girish’s listing on the NoBroker app. "We learned that the accused had shown the same house to each victim and collected hefty advance payments," the techie told Salar News on Thursday.

Preliminary police investigations suggest the scam may involve Girish's relatives, prompting victims to escalate their complaints to the Central Crime Branch after initial frustrations with the local police. No statements have yet been issued by authorities or NoBroker regarding the incident.  -SALAR NEWS