Thane: Man duped of Rs 22 lakh by cyber fraudster

A 34-year-old man from Panvel in Maharashtra's Raigad district incurred a loss of nearly Rs 22 lakh after being enticed into investing the amount in an e-commerce venture, according to the police.

The incident occurred between May and June 2023, they said. The victim had joined a WhatsApp group in the first week of May. One of the group members lured him into investing money into an e-commerce website, saying that it was necessary for delivery of different items on sale on the platform. He was also told that his money would be returned in a month,  a police official said.

Subsequently, the individual provided him with a screenshot claiming that articles worth USD 56,000 had been sold on the platform. According to the victim's complaint, he had transferred Rs 21,97,350 to the unidentified accused, and he never received it back. The case was registered at the Cyber Police Station in Navi Mumbai.