Pune: A 37-year-old mechanical engineer working as an admin officer at a prominent IT company lost Rs 66.15 lakh to a share-trading fraud.According to a complaint filed with the Pune cyber police on Wednesday, the fraud occurred between Aug and Sept.The complainant, a resident of Sayyednagar in Hadapsar, told the police that he was added to a group on a messaging application. The group’s name and icon were similar to that of a share-trading firm.According to the FIR, the group members regularly discussed high returns that they claimed to be getting from trading online. Interested, the complainant contacted the group’s administrators, who sent him a link to a mobile application.The complainant initially invested small sums, but was encouraged by the administrator to invest in high-value shares and initial public offerings (IPOs). Offering to help him invest, the suspect shared details of 61 bank accounts, to which the complainant transferred money.“He exhausted his savings to invest in shares,” senior inspector Swapnali Shinde said.The application showed that his “portfolio” was valued at Rs 79.87 lakh, including returns. When he tried to sell the shares, the suspect wouldn’t let him. This prompted him to approach the police.
