Mumbai man loses ₹30,000 to debit card fraud

The fraud came to light on January 31 after the victim received an SMS alert on his mobile phone at 11.45pm, intimating him about the withdrawal

A senior clerk lost Rs30,000 to a fraudster who cloned his card and withdrew the amount from an ATM in Mumbai. The 49-year-old victim works at a provident fund organisation and lives in Jogeshwari (West).

The victim told the police that he had used his card to pay at shopping malls. (Representation photo/Shutterstock)

The fraud came to light on January 31 after the victim received an SMS alert on his mobile phone at 11.45pm, intimating him about the withdrawal. The victim went to the bank the next day and blocked his debit card. An enquiry with the bank revealed that the money was withdrawn from an ATM at Irla, Juhu.

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The victim then approached Amboli police station and filed a complaint, based on which a first information report (FIR) was registered for impersonation and cheating under relevant sections of IPC and IT Act. He told the police that he had used his card to pay at shopping malls and other places as well.

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Last year, the Bandra police busted a card cloning racket and arrested three waiters for stealing card details through palm-sized skimmers. Probe revealed they had cheated more than 1,000 people.