BENGALURU: Officials at the Consulate General of Japan in the city were shocked when a man walked into their office on Cubbon Road on Monday and enquired about a
car on sale.
The officials learnt from the man that he was responding to an
advertisement posted on an
automobile website in the name of Takayuki Kitagawa, Japanese consul general, Bengaluru, informing that his car is up for sale. The advertisement had a few photographs of a Toyota Innova Crysta vehicle with its registration number hidden. “It is my car, looking super, no scratches, Toyota Innova Crysta 2.4 GX for Rs 14,00,000,” it read.
Mistsuhiro Amao, Kitagawa’s subordinate, filed a complaint on Monday afternoon with Vidhana Soudha police, following which a case of cheating was registered against unidentified people.
Police said the miscreants misused Kitagawa’s name and official status and provided his office address for contacting him. The advertisement was published on August 16 and a prospective customer visited the consulate general’s office on Monday to enquire about the car.
“The miscreants created an email ID by providing false details in the name of Kitagawa. We are not sure why he mentioned the consulate general’s office in the advertisement to contact for the vehicle. We are trying to trace the miscreant and his intention will be revealed only after we question him,” a police officer said.
The advertisement was published on August 16 and cops have sought help from cyber crime police to trace the miscreants. Initial probe revealed that the email ID, Takayuki72@outlook.com, was created from a mobile phone. Police have also decided to question the man who walked into the consulate to know whether he had called the phone number provided in the advertisement, which has since been pulled down.
Innova
