A resident of Akmola Region fell victim to fraud while trying to rent an apartment in Almaty, and police have identified a suspect in the scam, the website infohub.kz reports.
According to the Instagram account of the Akmola Region Police Department, a 36-year-old local woman contacted law enforcement after losing money while searching for rental housing. In total, three such cases have been registered in the region.
"The victim found an advertisement on the OLX platform for an apartment in Almaty. She liked the offer, contacted the landlord via WhatsApp and transferred a deposit. Later, the woman discovered that the chat had been deleted and the person who posted the ad had stopped responding. Although the deposit was relatively small, it was significant for the victim," police said.
During operational and investigative measures, police identified a 31-year-old local woman who admitted her guilt.
"All circumstances of the incident are currently being established, and the suspect's involvement in other similar cases is being checked," the regional police department added.
Police urge citizens to be cautious when searching for housing online: do not transfer a deposit without verifying that the apartment exists and that the person offering it has the authority to rent it out.