Mumbai: The Byculla Police have registered a case of cyber fraud involving a 25-year-old youth from Mazgaon who lost ₹9.27 lakh in an online task scam. The victim, Fayyaz Jimmy Merchant, fell prey to a fraudulent message that promised easy money by simply following a few tasks.
According to the FIR, Fayyaz, a resident of Hasanabad Society on Dr. Mascarenhas Road in Mazgaon, works as a manager at a scrap shop in Darukhana owned by his uncle Salim Merchant. On June 2, around 10:30 AM, he received a message on the mobile from an unknown number, inviting him to "follow simple tasks and earn rupees."
Curious, he clicked on the message and followed the instructions. Two Telegram users, going by the names Priya Mishra and Preeti, added him to a group and initially transferred ₹150 as a reward for completing the first task. They instructed him to send similar links to six other individuals each day to earn more money.
Fayyaz followed their instructions and started receiving small payments, which built his confidence. Later, he was asked to invest money on a website called coinbasee.ltd, which falsely claimed to offer high returns through virtual coin purchases. Starting with ₹1,000, he was promised ₹1,500 in return.
Encouraged by the initial returns, Fayyaz invested a total of ₹9.27 lakh between June 2 and June 6. However, he soon realized he had been duped when no returns were credited thereafter and the platform became unresponsive.
The Byculla Police have registered a case under relevant sections of the Bhartiy Nyay Sanhita (BNS) and the Information Technology (IT) Act against unknown individuals.
