Retired telecom executive loses ₹1.10 crore in online trading scam

According to the complaint, an assistant in the group guided the complainant in opening a broker account. She then directed him to a fake website which reportedly facilitated share trading

NAVI MUMBAI: A 59-year-old retired telecom professional from Kharghar lost over ₹1.1 crore in an online trading scam operated via WhatsApp groups and a fraudulent investment website. The police on Monday registered a case of cheating in connection with the alleged scam that took place from April 9 till May 14.

Retired telecom executive loses ₹1.10 crore in online trading scam

The victim was added to a WhatsApp group unsolicited on April 6. The group was allegedly presented as a platform for stock market trading and IPO investments, with multiple admins and participants posing as investment advisors, assistants, and a CEO of a trading company, said a police officer.

According to the complaint, an assistant in the group guided the complainant in opening a broker account. She then directed him to a fake website which reportedly facilitated share trading. “Under the guise of lucrative investments, such frauds keep happening. The victim tried to ascertain the group’s authenticity by asking to withdraw the profit he made after investing ₹1 lakh in the beginning. He withdrew ₹8,000, which made him trust the cyber frauds,” said the officer. Over the next few weeks, he was convinced to invest large sums of money based on claims of high returns and fabricated trading dashboards displaying massive profits. During the period, encouraged by the fake profits, the victim transferred the money to various bank accounts shared by the scammers.

The scam came into the open when the website displayed profits to the tune of ₹4.6 crores. Simultaneously, he was informed about an IPO allotment worth ₹6.48 crore. “He wanted to cash in the profits. However, the victim was told that the IPO allotment was already made and as it costs more than the profits, he must pay the difference to access his profits. This made him realize he was scammed,” said the officer.

He filed an online complaint on May 17 through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal. Out of the total ₹1.10 crore invested, he only got back the initial ₹8,000. A case was filed under sections 66 D (cheating by using a computer) of the Information Technology Act, 2000 and 3(5) (criminal liability), 318 (4) (cheating), 319 (2) (cheating by personation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.