Kasaragod: Five people have been booked for allegedly cheating a Kasaragod trader of iPhones worth ₹38 crore by making bulk purchases from his Dubai-based wholesale business and furnishing fake payment confirmations.

The alleged fraud took place at Millennium Gift Trading in Deira, Dubai, run by N A Abdul Rauf, a native of Nellikkunnu in Kasaragod town, and his relatives. According to the complaint, the transactions took place between October 22, 2022, and October 28, 2023.

Kasaragod Town police registered the case after Abdul Rauf approached Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala, who forwarded his complaint to the police station.
The accused are Ramees of Chundankandi in Kozhikode, Yusuf of Valanchery in Malappuram, Sajil and Fareed of Erattupetta in Kottayam, and Nizam of Kattakada in Thiruvananthapuram.

According to the complaint, the accused bought iPhones in bulk from the business but allegedly used fake payment confirmations to obtain the devices without making the corresponding payments, said Town Police Station House Officer - Inspector Melbin Jose. The phones were then allegedly sold to other retailers in Dubai.

“Millennium Gift Trading is a wholesale business that deals in large quantities. The buyers are retailers who purchase phones in bulk to supply to other shops. The business handles transactions worth crores of rupees a day,” Jose said. The retailers have a credit line of a few days, which they exploited, said police quoting the complaint.

The complaint also alleged that a fake company seal was created in connection with the transactions.

As the alleged fraud took place in Dubai, the case presents jurisdictional challenges for the local police. “Since the alleged offence took place abroad, we will have to forward the complaint to the Crime Branch,” the inspector said.