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LDA employee loses ₹23 lakh in gift scam
Fraudsters gather personal details of her family, threaten to kill them or implicate them in a criminal case
A Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) employee was allegedly duped of ₹23 lakh after she fell victim to a gift delivery trap, police said.
The complainant, Jyoti Singh from Takrohi in Indira Nagar here, told police that on her wedding anniversary on November 28 she received a WhatsApp call from a stranger, who introduced himself as Manoj and claimed to be living abroad. The caller said he wanted to send her an anniversary gift.
Despite her refusal, she later received a call from another person claiming to be a courier agent, who demanded ₹10,000 to “return” the parcel. To avoid any inconvenience on her anniversary, she transferred the amount.
The next day, the woman received a call from a different number, with the caller identifying himself as a CBI officer. He claimed that the parcel contained objectionable materials and threatened her with arrest if the issue was not “resolved.” Out of fear, the victim reconnected with the so-called courier agent.
Police said the fraudsters escalated the pressure through repeated video calls and messages. They allegedly gathered personal details about her husband and children and threatened to kill them or implicate the family in a criminal case unless money was paid.
Between November 29 and December 22, Singh was made to transfer money to multiple bank accounts. Under pressure, she reportedly sold her jewellery and borrowed money from relatives and friends, eventually paying the callers a sum of ₹23.33 lakh.
The fraudsters assured her that the money would be returned and persuaded her to open a new bank account on December 17.The scam came to light on December 23 when her husband received a call.
An FIR was registered at the cyber crime police station on December 24. SHO Brijesh Yadav said the case was being investigated, and the transaction chain was being traced.”
