Jharsuguda: Jharsuguda police have arrested two persons for allegedly duping people by showing fake UPI payment confirmations and collecting cash without actually transferring any money, police said on Saturday.
The accused have been identified as Ranjan Barik (29) and Md Sahbaj (36), both residents of Ghumadera under Belpahad police limits. Police also seized a mobile phone and a motorcycle from their possession.
According to police, the accused would approach people and seek cash on various pretexts, including the unavailability of an ATM or a medical emergency. They would offer to make the payment through UPI in exchange for cash, making the victims believe that the transaction would be completed instantly.
In one such case, the accused allegedly approached a person and asked for Rs 10,900 in cash, claiming that the amount would be transferred through PhonePe. After scanning the victim’s QR code, they displayed a fabricated payment screenshot on their mobile phone using a dummy application.
Believing the payment to be genuine, the victim handed over the cash. It was later found that no money had actually been credited to the victim’s account. The victim subsequently lodged a complaint with the police.
During the investigation, police found similar complaints in which the accused had allegedly cheated people of amounts ranging from Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000.
Police said the accused used a fake or imitated payment interface designed to resemble a successful PhonePe transaction. The fabricated payment confirmation allegedly convinced victims that the money had been transferred, after which they handed over cash or goods.
Jharsuguda SP Gundala Reddy Raghavendra said the accused duo had been active in the area for the past two months. The total amount involved in the reported cases so far has been estimated at Rs 45,400, though the figure is likely to increase as the investigation progresses.
