Hyderabad Bizman Duped of Rs.78 L in Trading Scam
According to his complaint, the 42-year-old businessman accessed a trading website in August and was redirected to a WhatsApp contact posing as a support executive.
Hyderabad: Rachakonda cyber crime police registered a case after a Pedda Amberpet resident was cheated of over Rs.78 lakh in a fraudulent online trading scheme. Of the total `80 lakh he invested, the victim was initially allowed to withdraw only Rs.1.9 lakh to create an impression of legitimacy.
According to his complaint, the 42-year-old businessman accessed a trading website in August and was redirected to a WhatsApp contact posing as a support executive. Claiming to represent a genuine trading platform, the fraudster convinced him to invest large sums, assuring high returns. The victim said he was sent a link that generated login credentials and screenshots of alleged profits of other investors were shared to gain his trust.
Believing it to be authentic, the victim shared personal details, including Aadhaar number, PAN and bank account information. He was then granted access to an app resembling a trading platform that displayed stock listings, share allotments and profit charts. “They asked me to deposit funds to begin trading. I was shown returns on recommended stocks, which appeared profitable,” he said.
On August 21, he transferred Rs.43,500 to an account given by the fraudsters. The amount was converted into USDT and credited to his wallet, soon showing a profit of Rs.10,000. Encouraged by these gains, he invested further. “I transferred another Rs.11.5 lakh, which was also converted to USDT. My wallet showed my investment growing to Rs.44.24 lakh, equivalent to 50,890 USDT,” he said.
He successfully withdrew Rs.1.3 lakh at first, but later withdrawal attempts were blocked. His account was frozen and he was told to deposit additional funds to reactivate it. Despite transferring larger amounts, withdrawals were denied and his account remained locked. It was only then that he realised he had been duped.
In total, the businessman invested Rs.80.38 lakh, of which he recovered only Rs.1.91 lakh, suffering a net loss of Rs.78.46 lakh. Police booked a case under relevant provisions of the IT Act and launched a probe.
