The complainant first came across an advertisement on Facebook on such investments and was made to a join a Whatsapp group, after which he put in Rs 56.20 lakh on the advice of the administrator and other members, an official said
The Central Region cyber police in Mumbai have registered a case and efforts are on to nab the accused. Representational Pic/File
A retired executive of a private company was duped of Rs 2.60 crore reportedly by two groups that promised him high returns on share market investments, a police official said on Monday, reported the PTI.
He first came across an advertisement on Facebook on such investments and was made to a join a Whatsapp group, after which he put in Rs 56.20 lakh on the advice of the administrator and other members, the official said.
"The man was later added to another Whatsapp group after he clicked on a second advertisement. In this, he lost Rs 2.07 crore. He realised he had been duped after he was unable withdraw amounts that were shown as profits. The Central Region cyber police have registered a case and efforts are on to nab the accused," the official said, according to the PTI.
Businessman loses Rs 4.21 crore in fake share trading scam
In a similar incident last month, a 57-year-old businessman from Peddar Road was allegedly duped out of Rs 4.21 crore by fraudsters posing as executives of a reputed investment firm through a fake share trading scheme.
According to police sources, the complainant, who runs a building contracting business, was targeted through a deceptive Instagram advertisement on May 16.
The advertisement promised high returns on share investments and directed him to a WhatsApp contact. He was subsequently added to a group which appeared to be managed by individuals posing as executives of a company.
An employee of the complainant had said, “The group provided daily stock tips and guided him to open an ‘Institutional Investment Account’ using a link that closely resembled an official trading portal. Initially, he invested Rs 1 lakh, on which he got a profit of 10 per cent or Rs 10,000 on the second day. His confidence bolstered, he invested up to Rs 4.21 crore between May 20 and July 8.”
The fake website showed a notional profit of Rs 52 crore, further reinforcing his trust in the scheme. However, when he attempted to withdraw his funds, he was informed that he would need to pay 15 per cent of the profit as a service and management fee, which raised his hackles. He approached the cybercrime portal (helpline 1930) and filed a complaint at the South Cyber Police Station.
(with PTI inputs)
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