Rs 35 lakh Amazon delivery fraud racket busted in Delhi, two arrested

New Delhi, April 21 (IANS) In a major crackdown, the Delhi Police have uncovered an alleged online delivery fraud racket linked to Amazon, involving misappropriation of high-value consignments worth around Rs 35 lakh, officials said on Tuesday.

Two accused have been arrested, and 14 sealed iPhone 16 units, valued at approximately Rs 10 lakh, have been recovered from their possession.

The action was carried out by a team from PP Sangam Park under the Bharat Nagar Police Station, which solved the case within a short span. The accused have been identified as Jaspreet Singh, 21, a resident of Swami Dayanand Colony, Kishan Ganj, and Himanshu, 30, also from the same locality in Delhi.

According to police, a case was registered at Bharat Nagar Police Station under FIR No. 234/26 under Sections 316(2), 318(4), and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), following a complaint of fraud linked to online shopping.

As per the complaint filed by Sumit Agarwal, a resident of Shastri Nagar, Delhi, he had placed orders for 50 mobile phones (iPhone 16, 128 GB) through the Amazon platform between April 12 and April 16. While the application showed all consignments as "delivered", the complainant alleged that he had not received any of the shipments.

Police said it was suspected that delivery personnel, in connivance with accomplices, falsely marked the orders as delivered and siphoned off the devices. The total value of the missing consignment was estimated at around Rs 35 lakh.

Taking cognisance of the seriousness of the situation, a dedicated police team was formed under the leadership of SI Rajesh Pilania, In-charge of PP Sangam Park, comprising SI Naveen, Head Constable Rakesh and Constable Harkesh. The operation was conducted under the supervision of Inspector Ram Kishore, SHO of Bharat Nagar Police Station, and ACP Akash Rawat of Ashok Vihar.

During the investigation, the team visited a facility located at B-86, GT Karnal Road Industrial Area, where an Amazon manager, identified as Sandeep, provided details of consignments marked as delivered.

Further scrutiny revealed that out of 32 tracking IDs examined, 26 consignments had been assigned to delivery agent Jaspreet Singh. Based on this lead, he was traced and apprehended.

During sustained interrogation, Jaspreet Singh allegedly confessed to having misappropriated the consignments in collusion with his associate Himanshu with the intention of making illegal gains. Acting on his disclosure, the police arrested Himanshu as well.

Subsequent searches based on their inputs led to the recovery of 14 sealed iPhone 16 units worth Rs 10 lakh. Police said verification showed that both accused are first-time offenders who allegedly resorted to the crime for quick monetary gain.

Officials said efforts are underway to recover the remaining stolen devices and to ascertain whether the accused are involved in similar fraud cases.

Further investigation into the matter is ongoing, police added.