Who knew 21-year-old Mohammed Asif’s love for a luxurious lifestyle could get him into so much trouble. Asif, a resident of Alwar in Rajasthan had scammed 20 people across the state before getting caught by the Vadodara police. His friend and accomplice Mausam Khan is still on the run. Asif’s crimes came to light after he scammed Bhavin Vasani, working as a sales officer in Asian Paints. Vasani wanted to buy a second-hand Maruti Swift Dzire from him through resale portal OLX. Asif identified himself as Tidabhai and managed to extract Rs 21,000 from Vasani through Paytm in different amounts by making excuses. Vasani realized he had been cheated and went to the police when he went to the address Asif had provided and did not find anyone by the name of Tidabhai there. The police tracked down Asif by tracing his PayTM number to Alwar, Rajasthan. During questioning, Asif confessed that he needed the money for buying expensive clothes and dining at expensive restaurants. His family had

Author-Sweta Joshi