Keanu Reeves impersonator dupes 65-year-old woman in Versova asking her to fund his flight tickets

A complaint was lodged by the woman's daughter at the Versova police station. The woman alleged that the fraudster gained the trust of her mother, who lives alone at her house in Versova. The fraudster also allegedly manipulated her into believing that she was communicating directly with Reeves. The FIR mentions that the victim’s daughter, who lives in London, has access to her emails due to the elderly woman’s deteriorating mental health issues.

As per the FIR, the woman’s daughter noticed a bank message on her mother’s email regarding a NEFT transaction worth Rs 65,000 on June 30 to a bank account belonging to an unknown person from Dehradun, Uttarakhand. The police registered a case under sections 66C (identity theft) and 66D (cheating by personation using computer resource) of the Information Technology Act, 2000, and criminal offences of cheating under Section 318(4) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

The FIR stated, “Her mother first told her that she had sent the money to a friend. Subsequently, as she sought more details, her mother told her that she has been in touch with Hollywood actor Keanu Reeves and his close associate through social media and that he had sought the Indian currency to book flight tickets to visit her in India."

The police noted that the woman’s daughter told her that it was not possible that a Hollywood actor would seek money from her and that the money was transferred to another account in Dehradun.

How the impersonator duped the woman

The victim’s daughter allegedly sought more details and discovered chats between the accused and her mother, which included photos of her bank passbook pages, a deposit slip, and a passport, which were shared with the impersonator and another person claiming to be his associate.

The person's name was saved as 'Keanu Reeves' in the phone by the senior citizen, and he continued to chat with her and influence her. He tried to make her believe that the bank had stolen the money, the complaint stated. In the complaint, it is also stated that the chats showed the victim had mentioned selling her jewellery to send money to the impersonator. 

“Screenshots from the Telegram (app) reveal that the scammer persistently attempted to brainwash the victim, creating distrust toward her family members and encouraging her to isolate herself from them,” the complaint noted.

According to the complainant, the victim's search history showed how to she searched for ways to send parcels to Brazil and to the address given by the accused. Her daughter also stated that there was proof of strangers trying to get information about her money and accounts.

 

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