In four separate cases registered this week, investors collectively lost nearly Rs4 crore in a share investment fraud. In the first case, between January 11 and March 24, a 50-year-old Kharghar resident working in a private company was duped after clicking an investment-related link. His mobile number was added to a WhatsApp group providing share tips, where scammers convinced him to download a trading app. Following their instructions, he transferred Rs1.94 crore in 16 online transactions. The app displayed earnings of Rs4.64 crore, but when he attempted to withdraw, he was asked to pay additional taxes. Realising the fraud, he approached the police, who registered a case on March 25.
In the second case, a 30-year-old Kharghar woman lost Rs80.16 lakh between February 28 and March 26. She had clicked on a share trading ad on Instagram, after which her mobile number was added to a WhatsApp group. Induced to download a trading app with promises of great returns, she transferred Rs80.16 lakh in 15 online transactions. A case was registered on March 27.
A 46-year-old Airoli resident lost Rs57.26 lakh between December 7 and March 23. Scammers added him to a WhatsApp group, instructed him to download a bogus trading app, and directed him to transfer funds in 18 online transactions. When he received no returns, he realised the fraud and approached the police, who registered a case on March 27.
In the fourth case, a 50-year-old man lost Rs50.27 lakh between January 13 and March 21 in seven online transactions. A fraudster contacted him, offering share investment opportunities and convincing him to download a trading app. He transferred the money to different bank accounts and saw Rs1.41 crore in his trading account, but his withdrawal requests were denied. Realising he had been scammed, he approached the police, who registered a case on March 28. The Navi Mumbai cyber crime police have launched a probe into these four cases.
