Mumbai: A 27-year-old tech professional from Bhandup was allegedly duped of Rs 8.40 lakh by cyber fraudsters who lured him into a task-based investment scam through Telegram groups, promising lucrative returns for simple online activities.
Victim Files Complaint With Police
The victim, Sagar Vijay Magre, a Quality Analyst employed with Wipro in Navi Mumbai and a resident of Tembhipada, Bhandup (West), filed a complaint at the Bhandup Police Station after realizing he had fallen prey to an online scam.
A case has been registered against unknown persons under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Information Technology (IT) Act. Police are currently investigating the matter.
How The Scam Unfolded
According to the FIR, the fraud occurred between August 18 and 26. On August 17, Magre was added to a Telegram group named DGM.126, where links to newly released and old movies were shared. Upon clicking the links, he was redirected to IMDb.com, and was told he would earn Rs 50 per like on movie pages.
Scammers Build Trust Before Extracting Large Amounts
To build credibility, the scammers initially transferred small sums ranging from Rs 150 to Rs 200 into Magre’s bank account after he liked a few movies links. He was then added to more Telegram groups including 857 CME TASK GROUP, 141 CME TASK GROUP, and 5609 CME TASK GROUP.
Fake Profiles And High-Return Promises
Magre was subsequently contacted by individuals using handles such as @IshikaRastogi22, @MohiniAgarwal_ACT_11, and @AbhishekChoudhary_FCM, along with WhatsApp numbers. He was asked to create a profile via a shared link and invest in various "slabs" with the promise of higher returns.
Losses Realized, Complaint Lodged
They encouraged him to invest through a link they shared. Believing the promise of higher returns, Magre ended up investing a total of Rs8.40 lakh. However, he received no returns.
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Realizing he had been scammed, Magre contacted the Cyber Helpline (1930) and filed an online complaint. He later lodged a formal complaint at the Bhandup police station.
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