66-yr-old cheated of Rs17 lakh by Facebook ‘friend’

The accused convinced the woman to transfer lakhs of rupees, in multiple transactions in less than a week, said officials.

A 66-year-old retired nurse was cheated of Rs17.16 lakh, by her Facebook ‘friend’ on the pretext of making her pay customs duty on a gift he was allegedly sending her.

A 66-year-old retired nurse was cheated on Rs17lakh by her Facebook friend. (HT File(Representational Image))

The MHB Colony police are trying to trace the accused, whose identity is unknown.

The victim, Theresa Aranha, a resident of New Link Road, in Dahisar (West), on January 10, received a friend request from the accused, which she accepted. According to the police, the accused is a youth.

The accused started messaging Aranha on the social media website and eventually got her to exchange numbers with him.

The accused kept in touch with the elderly woman. They exchanged messages on WhatsApp, between January 10 and January 31.

“During this time, the accused told her he will be sending her a gift. It is unclear where the accused was operating from. To ship the gift to Mumbai, the accused claimed she will have to pay some customs charges,” said Ashok Jadhav, senior inspector from MHB Colony police station.

The accused convinced the woman to transfer lakhs of rupees, in multiple transactions in less than a week, said officials. Aranha continued transferring money, thinking she was paying for customs duty.

On January 31, Aranha realised she was conned and alerted the police. She had not told anyone at home that she was in touch with the accused, said officials.

The MHB Colony police have registered a case of cheating against the unidentified accused under sections of Indian Penal Code.

The police said further investigations will reveal where the accused operates from and if he has targeted other people in this way.