Mumbai: Two men were arrested from Rajasthan for duping an Oshiwara-based minor girl through a Facebook advertisement that offered 100 times the returns on online investments. The girl paid money initially through her phone and then discreetly through her mother’s phone before she realised she had been taken for a ride, police said.The incident unfolded between July 12 and 13. The 17-year-old complainant is a class 12 student and lives with her parents. On July 12, she was surfing Facebook at home when she saw an advertisement from ‘wizard traders.’ The advertisement said that if one invested Rs 99, he/she could earn Rs 9,999 through the scheme. The girl was fascinated with the advertisement as the returns promised were 100 times the original investment. She clicked on a link given in the advertisement. The link took her to a chat message on WhatsApp.The fraudsters said hello to her and asked her to send them a screenshot of her investments. The girl kept paying via UPI till 3.30 am while her mother slept. She made 22 transactions in total to various bank accounts given by the fraudsters. After paying up around Rs 74,000 and not receiving any returns, she realised that she had been conned. She then confided in her family and they called up ‘1930’, the cybercrime helpline.On July 14, an FIR was registered by the Oshiwara Police under provisions of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Information Technology Act. Under the supervision of DCP Purshottam Karad and Oshiwara senior inspector Sanjay Chavan, a police team comprising cyber officer Vijay Sardesai and others tracked down the fraudsters to Rajasthan.The accused, Deepak Meena (21) and Harkesh Meena (30), were arrested on Sept 1. Police said Deepak had recently finished college while Harkesh is not employed. Police are probing whether the duo have similarly duped people anywhere else in the country.Police have also appealed to citizens not to click on unsolicited links online and to never make any payments without verification. Cybersecurity experts have also cautioned parents to keep tabs on online activities of their minor children.
