PUNE: Fraudsters have found a new way to use the cargo and customs formalities at the Pune airport to cheat citizens.In several reported incidents, fraudsters pretending to be defence personnel lured buyers with attractive sale listings on e-commerce websites and convinced the unsuspecting victims to pay up in advance claiming that the items were stuck in customs or the cargo hold of the airport. These imposters managed to convince the buyers by flashing fake identity cards. In most cases, the victims were called to the airport or areas nearby.The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) at the Pune airport approached the police, and the airport police have now put up information boards in and around the facility to caution people.“In the last month-and-half, we have come across four to five such complaints and have told the victims to approach the local police station,” a source in the CISF told TOI. “The imposters are using fake ID cards to pass off as men from the army, Sashahtra Seema Bal (SSB) etc.” he said.“People wait at or near the airport for the sellers to come and deliver the items. We found that the victims were duped by the conmen who claimed that the items they (the buyers) want to purchase are held up in the cargo or the customs, and the buyers must pay to get the goods. The victims later find out that they have been duped and approach the CISF,” another official said.In December, Kothrud resident Vivek Gaur — who wanted to buy a cellphone listed on Olx — was called to the airport by a person claiming to be an SSB jawan. The man had sent the image of an ID card of an SSB jawan as his identity proof to Gaur on WhatsApp . The victim lost Rs 22,000. He then approached the cyber crime police at Shivajinagar.Airport police station’s senior inspector Dilip Shinde said four boards were installed to caution people. “We have received nearly a dozen complaints. These fraudsters are believed to be operating from Jharkhand. They post advertisements on online platforms to sell phones and scooters and tell the victim to come to the airport. While conversing on the phone, the victims hear the sound of aeroplanes and get tricked,” he said.

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