Novosibirsk residents scammed in Dubai iPhone deal

Anna, a resident of Novosibirsk, ordered new iPhones from Dubai through an acquaintance. The order was collective: her friends and mother joined in, and together they transferred over a million rubles (approximately $12,500 at current rates) for the new gadgets. But instead of seven smartphones, they received only two. The dissatisfied customer tried to get her money back and, after a long wait, turned to the police. NGS spoke with the woman and reached out to her acquaintance for explanations.

“A Good Experience Gained”

Anna and her husband live between two countries: she periodically visits Dubai but describes her time in the UAE more as travel than permanent residence.

Last year, the Siberian woman met a smartphone seller when her friend needed a new iPhone 16 at the time. Anna asked a friend for the contact of a smartphone purchaser in Dubai, and he sent her the number of Arthur G.

“I order an iPhone from him, transfer money to a third party«s card, and they deliver the phone to me. A good experience gained, so to speak,” Anna said. “And over the course of a year and a bit into 2025, I bought two iPhones and one Apple console from this person.”

Anna recalled that Arthur delivered the console with a slight delay in timing. But the woman had no suspicions—they had a mutual acquaintance and positive experience in interaction. About the man himself, the Siberian woman knows little: he previously lived in Novosibirsk, not Dubai, regularly flies to Europe, and drives a good rented car.

Anna said that after one of the purchases, she corresponded with Arthur and mentioned that she might contact him again when the iPhone 17 goes on sale. According to her, the man began to “persuade” the potential buyer to place an order for the new smartphone. When she decided to buy, Arthur inquired about her acquaintances.

“On the 19th, they have the official release [of smartphones], on 24 September I’ll give you everything in Dubai, you can order up to ten pieces,” the woman quoted Arthur.

Global sales of all new models started on 19 September 2025. Apple presented the new gadgets on 9 September.

Anna believed that he really had “connections” with suppliers. With her mother and friends, they collected about a million rubles (approximately $12,500 at current rates) for the new phones and transferred the money to the details of Arthur«s acquaintances (some transaction confirmations are available to the editorial office).

Seller Without a Personal Card

When the buyers were supposed to receive the phones, Arthur suddenly said that he could not bring the smartphones to Novosibirsk but was ready to hand them over in Dubai. However, it was not possible to take all the devices at once—only two.

“There were no suspicions. And then he asked: ‘Do you have anyone else who needs them [the phones]?’,” Anna recalled. “I made a reasonable decision and said: ‘Let’s get everything from you first, then I’ll order more.’”

Two smartphones were handed over to Anna«s acquaintances on 25 September, but the remaining phones never reached the buyers. According to the woman, Arthur “strung them along” for about a week, and since 3 October, the parties have been negotiating the return of funds.

“It’s not about the iPhones anymore, it’s about the money at least. I’m trying to get something back,” Anna said. “I haven’t received a single phone since then. I asked several times why he doesn’t have his own card—he avoided answering.”

She admitted that in early October, she had to buy the promised phones for her friends who had transferred money with her to the “Dubai dealer”. Anna estimated her losses at about $9,500 (at current rates, over 760,000 rubles).

Arthur, as Anna explained, during the long correspondence returned part of the funds, but not in full—only about 190,000 rubles (approximately $2,400 at current rates). On 27 October, the woman turned to the Novosibirsk police, and NGS confirmed this with the press service of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs for the region. The statement has been registered.

“Police officers are conducting an inspection, all circumstances are being established,” the police reported.

Where Did the Money Go?

One of the numbers to which Anna transferred money for the smartphones is listed in the contacts of a Moscow company trading in fuel and similar goods. Moreover, a fairly successful company: according to Kontur.Focus, at the end of 2024, its revenue was 1.2 billion rubles (approximately $15 million at current rates) with a net profit of 19.9 million rubles (approximately $249,000 at current rates).

The number is registered to the company«s general director Alexey L.—he also manages several other organizations with lower financial indicators. An NGS correspondent contacted the businessman, but he said he could not talk on the phone and suggested writing a message. He did not respond to it.

Another number, to which Anna transferred part of the money for the smartphones, belongs to a Buryat (judging by the TIN) entrepreneur Natalya F.—she previously managed a Moscow-based clothing manufacturing company.

“I Have No Conflict”

An NGS correspondent tried to contact Arthur G. himself. The man did not answer the call but sent a message: “I do not negotiate with scammers and cheap manipulators (check the information thoroughly). And I have no conflict, she has one.”

In the man«s messengers, there are several photos. In one picture, a person (possibly Arthur himself) in a hood poses in front of a BMW car, and in another frame, one can see a hotel built in the middle of the sea in Dubai, but the person»s face is not visible. The description of the personal page in English translates as “a multifaceted, extraordinary personality.”

It was not possible to find active social networks of Arthur G. at the time of publication. Presumably, NGS found an old account of the man on VKontakte, in the description of which there is a phrase “Deceiving fools is not a crime.”

Arthur«s full namesake, according to the FSSP, is a native of the Irkutsk region, but is mentioned in the database of Novosibirsk bailiffs. In different years, he had debts, the largest recorded several years ago: almost 7 million rubles (approximately $87,500 at current rates).

In a conversation with NGS, Anna mentioned that the seller of expensive smartphones was involved in a conflict with the scandalous (in particular, due to deportation from Russia) blogger Nekoglai—the Siberian with acquaintances allegedly deceived him. NGS could not establish whether the Telegram channel where the corresponding post appeared is a verified resource. The editorial office contacted the blogger«s representative with a request to comment on the situation.

Recently, NGS reported how the sale of a car turned into lawsuits for dozens of Novosibirsk residents. A dealership owed Siberians 15 million rubles (approximately $187,500 at current rates).