Port of Spain: $11,000 fraud through Facebook marketplace

Trinidad and Tobago: A man lost an amount of eleven thousand dollars in local currency in a fraud deal of gold chain, which came out as fake, in Port of Spain. The victim came in contact with the seller through an advertisement on the Facebook marketplace. They decided to meet for the deal in person on Monday, 10 June, around 2:35 pm.

As per the reports, the man saw an advertisement selling a Spanish link chain made of gold on the Facebook marketplace by a seller named Kevin. The victim, who is a resident of Trestrail Lands in the D’Abadie community in Trinidad, contacted the seller and showed his interest in buying the gold chain.

It is mentioned that both parties decided to meet to execute the deal, which was scheduled on the day of the fraud in Port of Spain. On Sunday, 09 June, both parties talked and agreed on the location for the meeting the next day. The victim was called to Maraj and Sons Jewellers, which is located on Broadway Street.

On the day of the fraud, both the involved sides met at the Maraj and Sons Jewellers for a meeting in Port of Spain. The suspect, named Kevin, presented the gold Spanish link chain to the victim buyer for which the meeting was scheduled. For surety of the quality of the product, the gold chain was taken to the counter of the customer service representative.

Subsequently, the gold chain was examined by the customer service representative in front of the victim and termed as genuine. After the surety of the purity of the gold chain, the deal was locked. The suspect collected the promised amount of eleven thousand dollars from the victim as the price of the product, after which both parties left the place.

Straight after leaving the Maraj and Sons Jewellers, the victim visited the More Money Jewellery Store along Henry Street. The motive of the victim was to double-check the purity of the gold chain for his satisfaction. After the test of the gold chain, which he just bought from Kevin, he was informed that the product was not genuine.

As the fraud was revealed due to the second test of the alleged gold chain, the victim again went to the Maraj and Sons Jewellers in Port of Spain. After returning to the place with a fake gold chain, the victim found no one. Eventually, the victim arrived at the police station and registered a complaint while explaining the entire situation of the fraud to the officers on duty. The investigation is under process.