Hyderabad: A 63-year-old retired employee from Secunderabad lost Rs 78.4 lakh in an online stock market investment fraud. According to the victim, a resident of Kanajiguda in Secunderabad, he was contacted on May 1 by a woman through a WhatsApp voice call. She claimed to be the personal assistant to the CEO of a Mumbai-based private firm involved in stock trading. She lured him into an exclusive high-net-worth investment scheme, promising access to block deals, discounted IPOs and select stocks.“I was added to WhatsApp groups where fake profit screenshots and withdrawal proofs were circulated. I initially believed them to be true. Following their instructions, I downloaded a trading application through a link provided by them,” the victim told the police. After successfully withdrawing Rs 1,000 as an initial test, the victim continued investing larger sums by transferring money to different bank accounts provided through the app.When the app reflected virtual profits of Rs 3 crore, the victim attempted to withdraw the amount. However, the fraudsters demanded a 15% processing fee to release the funds. When he tried to call them, he was unable to reach any of the “representatives”. Realising that he had been duped, the victim lodged a complaint with the Malkajgiri police, stating that he was duped for Rs 78.4 lakh between May 19 and July 7. A case was registered on Monday at the Malkajgiri cybercrime PS under relevant sections of the BNS and the IT Act.
