Ahmedabad: A 38-year-old resident of Vastral lodged a complaint with cybercrime police on Sunday after being duped of Rs 30.5 lakh in an online scam involving a fake part-time job offer.According to the complaint, the victim, an employee with a private company in Vatva GIDC, received a Whatsapp message from an unknown number on March 11. He was asked to post reviews of hotels and restaurants on Google Maps in exchange for small payments.Initially, the victim declined, but agreed after being persuaded to attempt a few tasks.He was paid small amounts for his initial reviews, which built trust. He was then asked to join a Telegram channel for further assignments and payment processing.The fraudsters introduced “advanced tasks” that required upfront payments and promised higher returns through crypto trading.The victim transferred Rs 2,000 as a trial and received Rs 2,630 in return.Over time, he was persuaded to deposit larger sums under various pretexts, such as incomplete remarks, a low credit score, and eligibility for “VIP customer” status.The accused also claimed that funds were being routed from foreign accounts and that “capital verification” payments were required.Between March 13 and April 1, the victim transferred Rs 30.5 lakh in multiple UPI and IMPS transactions from his bank accounts.When he attempted to withdraw the funds, he was told his account was frozen and that further payments were required to “unfreeze” it.On realising that he had been cheated, the victim contacted the cybercrime helpline at 1930 and later filed a formal complaint. Police have launched an investigation based on the digital evidence submitted by the complainant.
