The Crime Investigation Department (CID) of Odisha police has arrested two cybercriminals on the charge of duping a doctor and another man of more than Rs 8 crore through fake initial public offerings (IPOs).
Two separate cybercrimes were reported as the victims were defrauded by the scammers by the fraudulent IPOs under the guise of reputed financial institutions, CID officials said on Thursday.
In the first case, Nikhil Jaiswal of Kolkata was arrested by the CID on a complaint by a 50-year-old man from Cuttack, who reported he lost Rs 2.36 crore in the online investment fraud. Earlier CID had nabbed another accused from Hyderabad in connection with the fraud.
“Unknown individuals persuaded him to invest in stocks and IPOs via fake apps, initially allowing small profits to gain his trust. He was later offered a fake loan to invest in IPOs and was unable to withdraw funds due to a “Pending Review” status. He was pressured to repay a non-existent loan of Rs 1.5 crore. Eventually, he realized he had been duped of Rs 2.36 crore by fraudsters using multiple WhatsApp numbers and false identities. He realized it was a scam and lodged an FIR. The case is currently under investigation”, Odisha CID said in a statement.
In another cyber fraud, a Bhubaneswar-based doctor fell victim to the well-orchestrated scam and was defrauded to a tune of Rs. 6,04,53,000 under the pretext of investment in the share market. The complainant transferred the said amount to multiple accounts as per the instructions of fraudsters who assured him of obtaining hefty returns by investing in IPO and OTC trading. Later, when the complainant was unable to withdraw his return, he realized about the fraud and reported the matter at the Cyber Crime Police Station, CID Cuttack for the necessary legal action.
The CID sleuths tracked down the accused Tapas Haldar from Basanti Colony Road in Ultadanga Main Road, Kolkata. He was brought under remand and was remanded to jail custody after a court in Bhubaneswar rejected his bail application.
The citizens are requested to beware of unsolicited investment offers on social media and messaging apps—always verify before investing to avoid falling victim to cyber frauds and to report such matters at 1930 Cyber helpline or at the nearest police stations, the CID stated in an advisory.