A court in Semey has sentenced a 22-year-old resident of Oral (Uralsk) in a fraud case involving fake short-term apartment rental listings, infohub.kz reports.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs' information media portal, the young man posted apartment rental ads on online platforms using property photos found on the internet. In messages to prospective tenants, he set out the terms and demanded an advance payment equal to one night's stay.
After receiving the money, the fraudster cut off contact with his victims and blocked their phone numbers. Bank accounts belonging to third parties were used to receive and subsequently cash out the funds.
The criminal investigation identified 16 counts of fraud against people who had intended to rent housing in various cities across Kazakhstan. His actions were classified under Part 3 of Article 190 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan (fraud committed repeatedly by deceiving internet users).
The Interdistrict Criminal Court of Semey sentenced the young man to 2 years, 7 months and 15 days of restricted freedom with probation supervision. The court also addressed the issue of compensation for the victim's material damages.
Recall that police in the Abai Region had earlier identified a 22-year-old resident of Oral suspected of a series of frauds involving non-existent apartments. He was detained. Footage released by police showed the young man sitting on a bench when officers pulled him to the ground. He was then placed in a temporary detention facility.