On the paradise island of Bali, which is sometimes called Bounty Island because of the similarity of beaches with advertisements for famous sweets, scammers have become more active.
Their scams can cost tourists “a lot of money” – the victims assure. The warning appeared in a local tourist group for Australians visiting Bali, but Russian tourists also suffer from this fraudulent scheme.
According to this information, scammers mostly “live” in local bars, unpleasant meetings took place in the popular coastal area of Legian. At the same time, scammers pose as the same tourists. The essence of the scam is that a couple of supposedly tourists approach their colleagues, “presenting” them with an unfamiliar currency, and ask them to find out how much they can get for it.
“Yesterday I was in a bar on Legian, and an elderly Indian couple came up to me with two US dollars. They entered the bar and put his money on our table, asking me to explain how much it costs,” said one of the victims. It would seem quite innocent behavior. However, as tourists explain, a whole gang is fishing in this way. At best, when tourists are carried away by the conversation, other gang members will “clean out” the pockets and purses of tourists who are carried away by the conversation. If they risk showing their wallet, they can quickly snatch it out of their hands and rush off on a scooter.
“I just started calling security and got a hateful look. They got away pretty quickly. And the bar staff hid!” – the tourist is indignant. As he adds, tourists have encountered such scammers repeatedly. “Do not engage in conversations with them, say: “Google is your friend” and, if possible, leave,” the tourists say. At the same time, they are sure that there are places where these scammers have been seen repeatedly — but so far none of them have been detained.
Tourists are also warned not to succumb to various street surveys — like “how long have you been here, what hotel do you live in, what are your plans for the day”. Gullible tourists risk returning to the “enclosed” room, they assure. By the way, it is also recommended to check the local currency after the exchangers — tourists are told how the exchange office in the popular tourist city of Kuta “lured” a couple of 2.2 million rupees or about $ 215, taking advantage of their ignorance with local money.