A 57-year-old homemaker was allegedly duped of ₹ 1 crore after cyber fraudsters lured her into investing through a bogus share trading application by promising high returns, Noida police said on Wednesday.
The woman, a resident of Sector 41 in Noida, approached police after she was unable to withdraw the purported profits shown on the application. Encouraged by the purported profits, she transferred a total of ₹ 1 crore between August 25 and September 29. “Cybercriminals contacted the victim through a social media platform and lured her into making bogus share market investments. In late September, when the woman attempted to withdraw the purported profits, the suspects allegedly demanded further payments. The woman then filed a complaint on the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal, following which the matter was transferred to the Noida Cybercrime Branch. “A case under sections related to cheating and cheating by personation of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and provisions of the IT Act was registered against unidentified suspects. Police advised residents to verify trading applications, bank accounts and investment schemes through official sources before transferring money, particularly when unusually high returns are promised.
A case was subsequently registered at the Cybercrime Branch police station, police said. The fraudsters promised her high returns if she started investing through their app,” said a police officer involved in the investigation. The officer said the woman initially transferred a small amount and was shown substantial returns on her investment. Police said the suspects contacted her through multiple unidentified mobile numbers and provided several bank accounts to which she was asked to transfer money. “When the fraudsters began asking for more money, she realised that she had fallen into a trap,” said Vijay Singh Rana, station house officer of the Cybercrime Branch police station. Efforts are underway to trace the money trail and recover the amount,” Rana said.
