Thomas O’Connor charged with 20 counts of online fraud, accused of selling non-existent iPhones online

A man who has been charged with 20 counts of fraud after allegedly ripping off online shoppers can now be named after he faced a Tweed court.

A man has been charged with 20 counts of online fraudulent activity after he allegedly faked his identity to sell iPhones online before running away with buyers' hard-earned cash.

Thomas O’Connor faced Tweed Heads Local Court on Friday, charged with fraud.

The charges include intentionally being dishonest to take financial advantage, to using different identities to deceive for financial gain and causing a financial disadvantage for financial gain.

Police allege the man tried to sell iPhones which did not exist. Picture: iStock.

The Brisbane man’s charges date back to 2016, according to police documents.

Police allege O’Connor pretended to sell an iPhone XS Max 512GB on Facebook Marketplace for $1550 in Oatlet in 2020.

The complainant saw an advertisement for a phone and contacted O’Connor to inquire about it, according to court documents.

She was satisfied with O’Connor’s responses and agreed to purchase the iPhone, it’s alleged.

Police believe the complainant was told the phone would be sent by courier to her address, she asked O’Connor for proof of his identity and then sent the money.

But it’s alleged the sought after iPhone was never received and the woman’s subsequent inquiries went unanswered.

“He sent her excuses and then stopped replying to her,” police allege in court documents.

The complainant contacted police and has since sought compensation of $1550.

Police allege O’Connor has scammed people out of about $11,200 throughout years of pretending to sell iPhones online.

He did not appear in court and the case was adjourned to December 5.