51-year-old Ludhiana man loses ₹31,600 in online fraud

Withdraw money from his bank account after seeking his details to process refund for a cancelled online order

Fraudsters duped a 51-year-old man of Rs 31,600 in the lieu of refunding money for his cancelled online order.

The victim had bought a mobile phone for Rs 4,499 on an e-commerce website on September 21 last year. The next day, he received a message from the website that his order was cancelled. (HT File Photo)

On the complaint of Gurmeet Singh, of Heera Nagar Colony, the Basti Jodhewal police have booked three persons, including two women.

They have been identified as Tapas Barik of West Bengal, Girija Devi of Madhya Pradesh and Indu of Uttar Pradesh.

The case was registered after a nine-month investigation.

Gurmeet had told the police that he bought a mobile phone for Rs 4,499 on an e-commerce website on September 21 last year. The next day, he received a message from the website that his order was cancelled.

Later, a representative of the firm called him and asked for his bank account details to refund the money for his order. The caller also sent him an online link. Minutes after Gurmeet accessed the link, Rs 31,600 were withdrawn from his bank account, following which he approached the police.

Inspector Sukhpal Kaur, who is investigating the case, said they had identified the accused, who will be arrested soon.

A case under Section 66 of the Information Technology Act and Section 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code has been registered against the accused at the Basti Jodhewal police station.