Bahraini Man Duped As UK Job Offer Hides BTA Phishing Trap
A 53-year-old Bahraini man, who holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and much experience, was recently a victim of a BTA scam in the UK.
The person was first contacted by a company said to be engaged in the extraction of crude petroleum and was based in Aberdeenshire in Scotland.
The person in the email said he got his resume from a popular online job recruitment platform and was offered the position of International Marketing Manager to be based in Scotland at a monthly pay of around BHD 4000.
The company has an active status as per the UK government’s website and he had contacted the company at the landline number listed in the company’s website to make sure that such a vacancy exists, the individual said.
Following an online interview, he was emailed an offer letter and was asked to move to the UK by March.
He would be assisted by another agency specializing in immigration services, the person was told over email.
‘Immigration requirements’
Emails were exchanged between the immigration services company and him in which the ‘immigration requirements’ to reach the UK were laid out.
The conditions included the need to deposit GBP 750 (BHD 355) in the person’s own name with a money transfer company headquartered in Dallas, Texas but has operations in the UK.
The money can only be collected by him after landing in the UK and upon presenting his passport, he was told.
‘Bahrain Connection’
The money transfer company partners with a leading money transfer company in Bahrain for its operations in the Kingdom and he went to the latter’s office.
The person was allegedly assured that only he could get the money upon presenting himself in person at the UK office of the money transfer company along with his passport.
Assured by this promise, the person sent GBP 750 in his name so as to ‘show proof’ for living expenses in the UK, a.k.a. ‘BTA’, as part of the ‘immigration requirements’ stated by the immigration services company.
While he was still in Bahrain, somebody collected the GBP 750 from the money transfer company’s office by posing as the individual.
His dreams of a good job shattered and his money lost, he is now demanding the two money transfer companies to return his money.
He has filed a complaint to the Central Bank of Bahrain and the UK government reporting it as a phishing scam involving the money transfer companies.
