Pune retiree, 70, loses Rs 2.10 crore to investment scam and fake ED arrest threat

Another major cyber fraud case has come to light in Pune. A 70-year-old man has alleged that he was first lured with promises of huge profits on an investment and then threatened with arrest in a money laundering case, and was cheated of a total of Rs 2.10 crore. A case has been registered at the cyber police station in Pune on his complaint.

The complainant is retired and lives alone in the Mundhwa area of Pune. According to the information in the FIR, the fraud had been going on since August last year. He approached the police when he realised he had been cheated.

According to the FIR, the man saw an advertisement on social media about an investment scheme. It carried photographs of a well-known industrialist, a Union minister and sportspersons. It also promised big profits.

When he called the number given in the advertisement, a man told him that the investing company was based in the UK. He asked the man to put in Rs 20,000 and promised to quadruple the amount in a week. The man sent Rs 20,000 through UPI, and within a week Rs 80,000 showed as credited to his investment account.

This won him over. The cyber fraudsters then persuaded him to invest Rs 5 lakh first, and then larger sums in instalments. In one go, he transferred Rs 1.07 crore. His investment portfolio showed an increase of Rs 2.80 crore. He therefore decided to withdraw the money, but could not.

Meanwhile, on July 2, he received a phone call. The caller claimed to be an official of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). He claimed that the man's mobile number had been found in connection with a crime, and that a call would come from the Mumbai Crime Branch about it. He was then threatened with arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case.

The fraudsters told him to pay money for the investigation, saying it would be returned once the investigation was complete. Frightened by the threat, the man transferred Rs 1.04 crore between July 8 and 15. After that, all the accused became unreachable. It was then that he realised he had been defrauded, and he went to the police.

Cyber crime is rising fast these days. People are cheated online through "digital arrest" threats or various kinds of lures, and the elderly and pensioners are especially targeted.