It is not new to hear someone get scammed over the phone, on the web or sometimes even in person by an ordinary person. But imagine, you walk into an airport, show your passport, and land up paying thousands of rupees because your passport is “dirty”. Well, this woman’s worst nightmare came through when she lost over ₹80,000 at Bali Airport.
Woman Gets Scammed Out Of ₹82,000 At Bali Airport
Monique Sutherland and her mother, aged 60, had planned a long-awaited vacation in a beautiful province. Unfortunately, they encountered an unexpected airport scam. The incident occurred at Tullamarine Airport (Melbourne Airport) when they approached the Batik Air counter.
Monique, 28, drew the attention of airport staff due to her worn-out passport. They requested her to sign an extra form known as the “blue form” and advised her to keep it with her passport. The explanation given was that her seven-year-old passport had become “slightly dirty.”
As per reports by News18.com, Monique and her mother boarded the plane to Bali after completing all due immigration procedures. They were excited about the six-hour non-stop flight. However, their happiness didn’t last long. When they reached Bali, airport staff noticed the blue note in Monique’s possession and quickly subjected her to a scary interrogation.
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Woman Loses Thousands Of Dollars Over Scam By Airport Authorities
Monique was then taken to an interrogation room at Bali airport. She endured almost an hour of questioning, feeling frightened and uncomfortable. The airport employees spoke in Indonesian, which added to her fear. They even laughed, intensifying her terror.
Eventually, Monique was accused of breaking the law because of her damaged passport. The airport staff demanded a payment of $1000 (approximately ₹82,000) to resolve the situation. They made it clear that if she didn’t pay, they wouldn’t return her passport.
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While initially Sutherland stood her ground and refused to pay, she claimed the authorities used her elderly mother to scare her into paying up.
Have you ever been a victim of such scams for authoritative figures? If so, how did you deal with it? Let us know in the comments.
Cover image courtesy: Canva