72-year-old man from UP buys 'magic mirror' for Rs 9 lakh to see people naked. It doesn't end well
They proposed that he could get the legendary "magic mirror" for a substantial sum of Rs 2 crore. GIF: dailyO
"Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the prettiest of them all?" While we have all heard this request and wished for a magical mirror that could predict fortunes or provide us with all the answers, a 72-year-old man from Kanpur wanted a different kind of mirror—one that would allow him to see people naked.
What the
On Wednesday (August 16), authorities in West Bengal caught three men accused of scamming a 72-year-old resident of Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh.
Avinash Kumar Shukla fell victim to a scam in which the three conmen convinced him to pay Rs 9 lakh for a 'magic mirror'. If you are thinking what was the 'magic' in this 'magic mirror' -- the scammers claimed that the mirror has the power to see people naked and ALSO foresee the future.
The three men who were arrested were:
- Partha Singhray, 46, hailing from Santragachi,
- Malay Sarkar, 32, from North 24 Parganas,
and
- Sudipta Sinha Roy, 38, from Kolkata.
They were arrested by the Nayapalli police in Odisha during the 'transaction process'.
How did it happen
- The victim got to know about the magic mirror through a mutual acquaintance, who got him in touch with the sellers of the mirror.
- All three pretended to be employees of 'a well-known Singaporean company' specialising in antiquities.
- They proposed that Shukla could get the legendary 'magic mirror' for a hefty sum of Rs 2 crore.
- He was also told that the mirror was used by NASA scientists.
- In order to gain Shukla's trust, the suspects introduced him to some people who impersonated previous purchasers of various antique items, including the magic mirror, from the Singaporean enterprise.
If you're thinking that's all, wait.
Apart from asking Shukla to pay Rs 2 crore, these conmen also asked him to come to Bhubaneswar to collect his mirror. Ordinarily, that should have struck him as a red flag, but no, Avinash Kumar Shukla, agreed to meet them.
So, both parties met at a hotel near Jayadev Vihar in Bhubaneswar, Odisha a few days ago, and it was during the transaction that Sukla (finally) realised something was fishy.
The police also said that they found out during the investigation that the gang have members who posed as both buyers and sellers before victims, "who are mostly rich and had a penchant for antique products".
Police confiscated a car, Rs 28,000 in cash, five mobile phones containing videos supposedly demonstrating the 'supernatural abilities' of the 'magic mirror,' and a set of fake contractual documents.