One involved exchanging QR codes outside stores to redirect payments

Chhatarpur:

Police on Tuesday said a group of tech-savvy fraudsters duped 10 shop owners by allegedly altering QR codes pasted in front of shops to redirect payments to their bank accounts in Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh.

Police have arrested one suspect and are searching for two others involved in the scam that came to light at a famous tourist resort, about 45 km from Chhatarpur district headquarters, the official said.

According to police, fraudsters replaced QR codes stuck in front of stores for online payments with their own to redirect money to their bank accounts.

Officials said the owner of a medical store suspected that payments made by his customers were not reaching his bank account.

While checking CCTV footage, he noticed a man changing the QR code, then turned to the police with a complaint, and later several such cases were found, he added.

Chhatarpur Superintendent of Police Agam Jain said they had received complaints from 10-12 shops about changing QR codes by some people, following which a First Information Report was registered.

He said the three accused, hailing from Jhansi district of Uttar Pradesh, replaced the QR codes with their own to redirect the payment.

Jain said one of the accused, Chhota Tiwari, has been arrested while his two associates are being searched for.

He said preliminary investigation revealed that the three were going to Saharanpur for work but were not earning enough.

The official said that while returning home to Jhansi, they decided to create QR codes on their phones and paste them at various places to earn money.

The SP said he used this method and placed QR codes at 10-12 places, including street food stalls and medical shops.

He said it was not yet known how much money the defendants managed to transfer to their bank accounts and the investigation would determine whether they also used the QR code technique in other places.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)