TWO MEN in India reportedly conned a doctor in India into purchasing what he believed was a genuine “Aladdin’s lamp” capable of granting him wishes.
Laeek Khan handed over €80,000 after the two criminals enlisted a fake genie to convince their mark that the lamp was magical.
However, Khan eventually discovered the lamp contained precisely zero genies capable of granting wishes.
He soon realised the truth: one of the two men had dressed up as a genie as part of the scam.
Significantly out of pocket following the ill-advised purchase, he went to police in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh to report the con job.
The men were eventually tracked down and arrested.
They remain in custody ahead of charges being filed.
Amit Rai, a senior officer told AFP: "The cheats had struck a deal for much more but the doctor had paid about seven million rupees (€80,000),"
"The wife of one of these men was also involved in the fraud. She is on the run," he added.
According to the complaint filed by Mr Khan, one of the men claimed to be an occultist and proceeded to “successfully” summon a “jinn” - a type of genie – from the lamp.
When the plaintiff attempted to touch the lamp or take it home, he was denied by the pair, who reportedly claimed it might cause harm.
They eventually agreed to sell him the lamp, promising health, wealth and good fortune would soon come his way.
In this case, however, the only good fortune Khan benefitted from was the fact police were able to track down the two culprits – others have not been so lucky.
As Rai explained:"The men have also cheated other families using the same modus operandi. The total amount of money involved runs into several million rupees.”
