Fake Lottery Emptied Victim's Account by 84,000 Dirhams with a 200,000 Dirham Prize

Two men who introduced themselves as representatives of a government agency lured the victim into a phone scam with the promise of a cash prize of 200,000 Dirhams. Instead of depositing the prize, 84,000 Dirhams were withdrawn from his bank account.

According to court documents, the incident began with a phone call. The callers told the victim that he had won 200,000 Dirhams and needed to follow specific steps to claim the prize. They presented themselves as representatives of a government agency to make the situation seem legitimate.

Subsequently, the scammers obtained the victim's identity and banking information under the pretext of completing verification steps, convincing him to also provide the one-time password or OTP for his bank account.

The victim, believing that this information was necessary to claim the prize, complied with their request; however, instead of receiving 200,000 Dirhams, he realized that a total of 84,000 Dirhams had been withdrawn from his account.

The Sharjah Misdemeanor Court found both defendants guilty in absentia and sentenced each to six months in prison. The court also ordered their deportation from the UAE.

Source: Gulf Times