21 scammed in auction hoax

A man has been arrested for scamming more than 9 million yuan ($1.45 million) from metal buyers by pretending to organize a scrap aluminum auction, local media reported Monday.

The suspect, surnamed Fang, was arrested in Shaanxi province on February 24 following a multi-city search, according to a report in the Xinmin Evening News.

Fang set up a licensed auction house to undertake the elaborate hoax. Using a fake name, he obtained a business license in December, rented an office and hired several employees, the report said.

He posted notices online that advertised an upcoming auction for scrap aluminum. He required interested parties to pay a bond fee to participate.

In total, Fang collected more than 2 million yuan from the bidders prior to the auction, the report said.

The scam wasn't uncovered until the 21 bidders showed up to the company's office for the auction on January 14. The company's employees told the bidders that they hadn't seen their boss in several days.

The bidders subsequently reported the incident to the Changning District Public Security Bureau. Police searched for Fang in the cities of Hefei and Xuancheng in Anhui Province.

By the time police located Fang in Shaanxi, he had already altered his appearance through cosmetic surgery. Police said they tracked him down through a girlfriend.

Fang admitted that he had pulled off the same scam before in Shanghai and Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province, defrauding his victims of more than 9 million yuan.

The report did not disclose the total number of victims.