Sr citizen duped of 1.1 cr after ‘stock mkt classes’
Times of India | 17 May 2025
Kolkata: A 71-year-old resident of a condo in Ultadanga fell victim to an international cyber fraud scheme, losing Rs 1.1 crore through a fake trading platformthat cops suspect was being operated from Southeast Asia. The 1.5-month-long fraud began with the accused arranging "classes" for the victims to accustom themselves to share trading.They were asked to download apps and use designated websites to trade.The victim, a resident of Bidhannagar Road, filed a complaint stating that he was defrauded between March 11 and April 29 through a mobile application and its associated trading group. "The victims were asked to sign up, and regular tutorials were held before ‘actual trading in stocks' began. The victim, in this case, was given returns in two instalments of Rs 1,500 and Rs 26 lakh, credited to his trading account. Cops said it is unclear if the returns could actually be credited beyond what was being projected virtually.The initial probe revealed that this app and the website used to trap the victims were developed in one of the Southeast Asian countries. However, Indian SIM numbers were used to run WhatsApp groups and carry on chats with the victims," said an officer. The primary suspect, who identified herself as Priya Sharma, allegedly contacted the complainant through multiple mobile numbers. "The fraudsters created a facade of legitimacy by establishing a WhatsApp group with 135-140 members. They even processed small initial withdrawals each day to gain the victim's trust, besides allowing two withdrawals," said an officer. The perpetrators then charged the complainant for larger withdrawals, including a 5% "account usage charge" and a "refundable" account verification charge of Rs 10,00,000.The scammers allegedly operated under the leadership of Bharat Shah, who posed as the group's director and regularly provided stock recommendations, including tips about IPOs and SPOs. The case has been registered under multiple sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, including section 61(2) for criminal conspiracy, along with sections pertaining to cheating by impersonation, criminal breach of trust, and forgery. The divisional cyber cell, with help from the DD cyber cell, has launched a probe and is working to trace the money trail.