E-Paper
Mohali: FIR registered as man loses ₹7 lakh in online trading fraud
To build credibility, the fraudsters shared a fake Aadhaar card and screenshots showing alleged profits earned by other investors.
Police on Thursday booked unidentified persons for allegedly defrauding a 37-year-old private sector employee of ₹7.09 lakh in an online trading fraud.
The victim, a resident of Dhakoli, said he had received a WhatsApp message on May 10, 2024, from a person claiming to represent a company named Value Icon. The sender promised high profits through online trading. To build credibility, the fraudsters shared a fake Aadhaar card and screenshots showing alleged profits earned by other investors. They collected his Aadhaar, PAN, email and bank details on the pretext of opening a trading account.
On July 5, 2024, the victim transferred ₹1 lakh as an initial investment and the fraudsters showed him a fictitious profit of ₹6.25 lakh on their platform to encourage further payments. Over the next several weeks, he transferred additional amounts to different bank accounts. In total, he transferred ₹7.09 lakh from July till August 23, 2024. When he attempted to withdraw his money, the fraudsters demanded a 25% tax payment to release the funds. After he paid the said amount, they claimed his balance had risen to ₹10 lakh and directed him to contact a senior on another mobile number.
However, once the victim expressed inability to make more payments, the accused blocked him on WhatsApp and stopped responding. It was then that he realised he had been duped, and approached the police, who told him he had fallen prey to a “pig butchering” investment scam.
Acting on directions from a local court, police registered a case under Sections 318(4) (cheating) and 61(2) (criminal conspiracy) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Section 66 (hacking) of the IT Act.
