Rs.15 Lakh Lost in Job, Crypto Fraud

Hyderabad: A 40-year-old retired Indian Air Force staffer from Sainikpuri lost nearly ₹15 lakh to an online job and cryptocurrency trading scam. Malkajgiri Cybercrime police have registered a case and launched an investigation into the scam in which the victim was lured by giving him returns of about Rs.11,000.

According to the victim, he received a WhatsApp message on February 13 offering a part-time online job involving Google product searches. The tasks required submission of screenshots, with daily earnings promised between ₹3,000 and ₹5,000. After completing a demo task, he was credited ₹200 as a joining bonus, which boosted his confidence.

He was subsequently added to Telegram groups, where administrators instructed him to complete online tasks and invest in cryptocurrency trading through a website projected as the Oasis platform.

Initially, he received small profits of ₹1,450 and ₹6,850, encouraging him to invest further. The fraudsters later demanded larger deposits under various pretexts, including training tasks, recovery of trading losses, tax payments, digital platform fees, and account unfreezing charges.

When he attempted to withdraw his total investment, he was informed that his account had been frozen and was asked to deposit an additional ₹5 lakh as a security fee. Realising he had been cheated, he approached the police.

In total, he invested ₹15,09,818, received ₹11,300, and suffered a net loss of ₹14,98,518. Sleuths have launched a probe, with bank account verification underway.

IT employee duped of ₹10 lakh in stock scam

Hyderabad: A 42-year-old IT employee from Alwal lost more than ₹10 lakh in an online investment scam after being lured through a WhatsApp group promising lucrative stock market returns.

According to police, the victim was added to the group in November 2025. The administrators claimed to be genuine, SEBI-registered investment advisers. They regularly shared stock tips, buy-and-sell recommendations, and screenshots showing heavy profits to gain members’ confidence.

The victim was later instructed to download a mobile application projected as a genuine trading platform. Initially, he invested small amounts which reflected profits on the app dashboard. Encouraged by the gains, he went on to invest large sums, which again showed increasing profits.

However, when he attempted to withdraw the funds, the fraudsters demanded a 5 per cent commission on the total profit. Though he paid the amount, it was credited back into the application instead of being processed. The accused further demanded additional payments towards brokerage and bank processing charges, claiming the funds were parked in a nodal account.

Realising he had been duped, the victim approached the Malkajgiri cybercrime sleuths. A case was registered and further investigation is in progress.