Mumbai: A 42-year-old woman from Chembur lost ₹7.35 lakh to an Instagram ‘friend’ in the process of retrieving a cash gift of $30,000 USD ( ₹24,49,876) stuck at the Customs department in New Delhi for clearance. The online friend sent this amount to financially help the victim, identified as Savita Khune.
The woman ended up spending the entire amount from the joint bank account with her husband, a BEST driver, to get the ‘gift’ cleared from Customs. The amount included ₹6 lakh loan amount, that Savita’s husband took for constructing a home at their native place.
According to Savita, she came in contact with one Ignatius Enwenye on Instagram in September this year. He claimed to be a businessman based in the United State of America (USA).
They started chatting on the photo-sharing app and during one such exchange, on September 25, Enwenye informed her that he was sending a gift to her but she refused to take the gift, said a police officer.
On September 27, Savita received a call from a woman, who claimed to be calling from the Customs department in Delhi and informed her that a gift – $30,000 USD had arrived at the airport in her name. Khune thought that the gift was sent by Enwenye and then she discussed it with him, who confirmed that he sent the amount to help her financially, said a police officer.
The complainant then contacted the caller and asked for a payment of ₹25,000 to get the gift cleared. The complainant then contacted her friend who uses GooglePay and asked her to pay the amount. After this, the caller started demanding more money under the pretext of clearing charges, taxes etc. to claim the non-existent ‘gift’. The complainant eventually ended up paying the amounts and completely drying up her bank account.
{{/usCountry}}The complainant then contacted the caller and asked for a payment of ₹25,000 to get the gift cleared. The complainant then contacted her friend who uses GooglePay and asked her to pay the amount. After this, the caller started demanding more money under the pretext of clearing charges, taxes etc. to claim the non-existent ‘gift’. The complainant eventually ended up paying the amounts and completely drying up her bank account.
{{/usCountry}}After the woman calling on behalf of the Customs department stopped answering her calls, Khune then realised that she was duped. She then discussed the matter with her husband and then they approached the Chunabhatti police on Thursday.
Police have recorded her statement and registered a cheating case against the unknown frauds.
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