- Rookie employee lost Rs 4,000 after lending money to a colleague with a sob story
- Colleague repeatedly delayed repayment and asked for more money using emotional appeals
- Other colleagues revealed the scammer used similar tactics on multiple people at the PG
Receiving a first salary is a major life milestone meant to be celebrated with loved ones, but for one rookie employee, it turned into a harsh life lesson after he trusted a colleague's sob story. In a social media post titled "Got scammed of Rs 4000. Lost faith in humanity," the man shared his ordeal. He explained that after receiving his first paycheck at the beginning of the month, he immediately sent Rs 5,000 to his parents. Shortly after, a colleague living in the same paying guest (PG) accommodation asked him for Rs 4,000 to pay off credit card debt.
As the colleague promised to return the money the next day after his salary would have been credited, the man agreed. However, the following day, the colleague said his salary was taking a little longer to be credited.
"He then asked for an additional Rs 500. I gave him that too. Two days passed, and still, no money was credited to my account," the man said.
"This time, I decided to confront him. But when I went to his room, he broke down crying, saying he was extremely poor, heavily in debt, and that his father was a farmer."
Seeing another human cry, the man said he couldn't bring himself to demand the money back. After he asked for an additional Rs 2,000, offering his bike as collateral, the rookie employee decided to go through with the loan again.
"This emotional manipulation went on for days, and not a single rupee was returned. I even offered him emotional support, listening to his financial troubles and family situation," he said.
"Today, when I went to collect my money, he wasn't in his room. I called him multiple times. Busy. I messaged him on WhatsApp. Got left on a single tick."
After multiple failed attempts, the man said he brought up the issue in front of other colleagues who revealed that the alleged scammer had pulled a similar trick on others.
"He had taken money from several of them using the exact same sob story! He cleared out of the PG in the middle of the night and had submitted his resignation to the company days ago," the man said.
"I've pretty much given up hope on getting that Rs 4,000 back. Can you guys suggest any way I might retrieve my money? I have his phone number, Instagram handle, bank account details, and his bike's license plate. What course of action can I take?"
Check The Viral Post Here:
Got scammed of Rs 4000. Lost faith in humanity.
by u/romaniator in LegalAdviceIndia
'Valuable Lesson For You'
As the post gained traction, a social media user said: "Keep this in mind, you learnt this lesson for 4k. This might save you much, much more in the long run." Meanwhile, another added: "That's a valuable lesson for life for just 4000 Rs. Let it go. You are young and in the long run treat this as an expenditure on lifelong learning."
A third commented: "You behaved and acted in a way as if we live in a world where people are always honest and act with integrity, but that's not reality, unfortunately. When it comes to lending money, only lend what you can afford to lose and only to people you consider trustworthy."
A fourth said: "I always follow one rule. Might be beneficial for you. I always lend money only that much which I can forget, or it doesn't feel heavy on me! In that way, if anyone scams me also, it doesn't feel big!"
