LONGGANG police busted five rings involved in online scams totalling 15,000 yuan (US$2,193) in a week.
Seven suspects were arrested in the week from July 19 to 26, Longgang police said in a news release yesterday.
Police received a report from a man surnamed Wang on July 20, saying two suspects cheated him out of 10,000 yuan by selling him virtual outfits in the “Perfect World,” an online game.
The two suspects, identified as Sun and Xu, had repeatedly asked Wang to transfer money into their account, claiming it needed to be activated.
Wang realized he had been cheated after he transferred around 10,000 yuan to the account. A police investigation showed the two had amassed 100,000 yuan from more than 100 victims nationwide since they started the scam in February.
The two were arrested in Zhanjiang, Guangdong, on July 25 with the help of local police, Longgang police said.
In a similar case, another game player Zhou was swindled out of more than 5,000 yuan paid into an account for a game. Police arrested two suspects in Guangzhou on July 26. The pair had allegedly set up a Web site to cheat players.
In a more serious online shopping case that involved victims in 16 cities, three scammers selling LED boards through a shopping Web site were recently arrested in Bantian, Longgang District.
A victim surnamed Wu reported to the police July 21, saying there was no response after he paid 1,350 yuan for 18 LED boards May 16.
The police tracked down the ring through the IP and arrested three suspects at a rented house in Bantian. Three computers and other equipment allegedly involved in the scam were confiscated.
Another fraudulent shopping Web site selling mobile phones was also shut down by police July 24, following reports from victims who didn’t receive the phones after paying online.
The Web site owner, surnamed Chen, was taken into custody. Police reminded netizens to be wary of the risks involved in online shopping.
Han Ximin, Gao Changxin