New Delhi, Jan 13 (IANS): Fraudsters have been duping unsuspecting businessmen dealing in fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) of crores of rupees after gaining their trust by making timely payments for initial purchases, police said on Wednesday.

The modus operandi of these fraudsters came to light during police investigation and subsequent arrests made in several cases.

Police said that fraudsters would first purchase goods from suppliers at prices higher than those in the market and make timely payments in the first few instances.

After winning the trust of businessmen, the fraudsters would then place bulk orders but give only 30 to 40 per cent of the money in advance and issue post-dated cheques for the remaining amount.

The cheques would later bounce, leading to losses to the businessmen.

The modus operandi came to light with the arrest of a woman by Delhi Police Economic Offences Wing in October 2020. The woman had made even her peon as company Director to derail police investigations and avoid legal action and deleted all digital footprints of her crime.

The Directors of the said company had duped a number of traders by purchasing goods like rice, dry fruits, and edible oils after issuing post-dated cheques that bounced subsequently. The goods were later sold in the open market and the money siphoned off.

In another case, one Mohit Goel was arrested by Noida Police on the charge of cheating several dry fruit traders of approximately Rs 200 crore. His company 'Dubai Dry Fruits and Spices Hub' ostensibly dealt in import and export of FMCGs, with corporate office in the industrial hub of Sector 62 in Noida.

Noida police investigation found that Goel and one Omprakash Jangid had allegedly duped traders dealing in dry fruits, spices, lentils, rice and edible oils by issuing them cheques that bounced later.

"The company is facing fraud cases lodged in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and some southern states," a senior police officer said.