Muscat: Popular Arabic FM radio station Al Wisal has shared in its Twitter page a recent statement issued by the Royal Oman Police on the new type of crime modus operandi, a honey trap that is practiced by fraudster groups.
Royal Oman Police (ROP) informed that the Department for Combating Economic Crimes at the General Department of Criminal Inquiries and Investigations has detected this new method of electronic fraud, according to local reports.
The statement issued online by ROP says: “The fraudster poses as a needy vulnerable woman from an Arab country in dire need of assistance materially and strikes a conversation with the unsuspecting victim. As the communication gets going, an emotional appeal surfaces, that kind of honey-traps the innocent victim. When it reaches a stage of free sharing of personal images, another member of the fraudster gang appears as the relative of the woman. What appeared to be a closed conversation is now known to others, the caller tells the victim.”
“And not just that, the caller also informs the victim that the girl was beaten and has been taken to the hospital for treatment. The victim is asked to bear the cost of the treatment, failing which, he is threatened that a complaint will be filed with the Omani embassy of their country.
“Then comes the third call to the victim, with the caller now posing as an employee at the embassy, saying there is a complaint against him. A number of citizens and residents have fallen victim to this criminal ring and have paid huge sums of money.”
Royal Oman Police has advised everyone to be beware of such fraudsters who try to seduce and trick people. “One should pay attention not to deal with these kind of people and must preserve our values and morals. And, importantly inform the competent authorities immediately upon exposure to such methods,” the statement from the ROP added.
