Rajkot: A 73-year-old retired exporter from Bhavnagar was allegedly duped of Rs 23.79 lakh in a stock market investment scam after being lured by promises of high returns through a fraudulent online investment scheme.Pradip Doshi filed a complaint at the Bhavnagar Cybercrime police station on Thursday, alleging that he fell victim to the scheme after responding to an investment advertisement on Facebook on July 8.According to the complaint, the advertisement purportedly promoted investment opportunities offered by ‘Finsol Security Pvt Ltd‘. After clicking on it, Doshi contacted a woman who identified herself as Ananya Kulkarni via WhatsApp.Kulkarni allegedly introduced Doshi to a scheme called the ‘Sarathi Plan,’ claiming that investors could earn substantial returns through initial public offerings (IPOs) and mutual funds. She also persuaded him to download an application called ‘Finsol‘ through an external link and upload his PAN card details to complete the registration process.Doshi made an initial payment of Rs 50,000 through Google Pay on July 8 to a bank account provided by the accused. He was later added to a WhatsApp group called ‘A-809 Elite Circle‘, where administrators shared daily stock tips.According to the complaint, the ‘Finsol‘ app showed simulated transactions and substantial profits as stocks were allegedly bought and sold. Convinced by the rising portfolio value, Doshi transferred a total of Rs 23.79 lakh in 11 transactions between July 8 and Aug 7, using multiple bank accounts allegedly provided by the accused.The alleged fraud came to light when the app showed that his investment, along with purported profits, had grown to around Rs 72 lakh. However, when Doshi attempted to withdraw the money, the transaction failed.When he confronted Kulkarni, she allegedly told him that his account had been blocked and demanded additional money to reactivate it. Realising that he had been defrauded, Doshi informed his son and lodged an online complaint through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal helpline on Aug 31.
