Three men have been sentenced after conning victims out of more than £100,000 through the fraudulent purchase of mobile phones and luxury watches.
Between June 2020 and February 2021, Ghazanfar Khan, Kulwarn Chagger and Rajvinder Kandola carried out a series of scams in which they used fake cheques to pay for high-value goods advertised on online marketplaces.
The trio would arrange meetings with sellers, claiming to pay via bank transfer. However, when the transfer did not go through, they persuaded victims to accept a cheque instead. Victims saw a pending payment in their accounts and handed over the items, only to later discover the money never cleared.
Around 13 victims were identified, linked by common fraudulent cheques, phone numbers, online profiles and names used during the meet-ups. CCTV and mobile phone data connected the men to the crimes.
Khan, 45, of Tividale Road, Tipton, and Chagger, 51, of Park Hall Road, Wolverhampton, were both charged with conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation and conspiracy to possess articles for use in fraud. They admitted the charges and were jailed for four years and two years respectively.
Kandola, 52, of Tilbury Close, Wolverhampton, admitted possessing criminal property. He was handed a nine-month suspended sentence.