New Delhi,  Delhi Police have arrested a 23-year-old engineering diploma holder, who duped people on Instagram by offering them free delivery and heavy discount on Apple iPhones.

The accused has been identified as Manish Tiwari, a resident of Bikaner in Rajasthan.

The police said that last year, Tiwari himself had become a victim of cyber fraud when he was cheated in a similar manner.

According to Sagar Singh Kalsi, the Deputy Commissioner of Police (North), a complaint was received at the Cyber North police station through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP) wherein the complainant alleged that after noticing iPhone 13 delivery at very low price on an Instagram page, he connected the person through the WhatsApp link given on the page.

"He talked over WhatsApp call regarding the delivery of iPhone gadgets. After this, the accused directed him to deposit 30 per cent of the payment in a bank account," the officer said.

After some time, the accused asked him to deposit more money before the delivery of the products. Thus the victim deposited Rs 1,77,800 in total, and when he persisted for delivery, he was informed that some more payment would be required for the delivery.

"The complainant then became suspicious, and subsequently the accused also blocked his mobile number. A case under relevant sections of Indian Penal Code was registered and investigation was taken up," said the DCP.

Through money trail and technical analysis, the police zeroed in on the accused, and on November 14, Tiwari was nabbed from Bikaner.

On interrogation, he revealed that he was cheated through a similar modus operandi last year. Therefore, he hatched a plan to dupe people by adopting a similar method of faking online delivery of Apple phones and gadgets to earn quick money.

"He used fake SIM cards purchased from West Bengal through Telegram links," said the officer.