E-Paper
Chandigarh bizman loses ₹57 lakh to trading scam
The victim, Madhavjeet, filed a complaint with the Chandigarh Police cyber crime cell, narrating that the fraud began on May 9, when he enrolled in a “stock market training programme” promoted via Instagram
Promising lucrative returns through an “international investment scheme”, cyber fraudsters duped a Sector 16-based businessman of ₹57 lakh.
The victim, Madhavjeet, filed a complaint with the Chandigarh Police cyber crime cell, narrating that the fraud began on May 9, when he enrolled in a “stock market training programme” promoted via Instagram.
The ad featured a supposed expert, Rajat Chopra, claiming to compete in the Global Trading Championship (GTC) and offering opportunities to invest in an international trading account linked to Upstox. Initially, Madhavjeet said, he was asked to invest ₹10 lakh, which he transferred to various bank accounts in July. However, he became suspicious when he realised that the payments were being made to different accounts, not directly to Upstox.
Upon contacting Upstox, he was informed that the platform had no affiliation with the scheme, but Chopra convinced him that his participation in GTC allowed for a separate international trading account. As the scheme progressed, Madhavjeet said, he was encouraged to invest further, with promises of high returns from IPO shares. When he expressed inability to pay ₹50 lakh for the IPO, Chopra offered a loan to facilitate the investment.
But despite making large investments, his account never reflected the promised returns. By August, Madhavjeet said, he realised he had been thoroughly scammed after attempts to withdraw his funds were blocked unless he paid further amounts.
A case under Sections 319 (2), 318 (4), 338, 336 (3), 340 (2) and 61 (2) of the BNS has been registered at the Cyber Crime police station against the unidentified accused.
