A 24-year-old woman, Anushka Bandopadhyay, employed as an associate engineer in an IT company, fell victim to cyber fraud when she was deceived with the promise of a profit ranging from ₹3 to 4 lakh for investing ₹30,000 in Bitcoin.
According to the information provided by Colaba Police, Bandopadhyay stated in her complaint that on a Thursday, while at home and browsing Instagram, she came across a post shared by a friend. The post urged her to click for Bitcoin investment opportunities.
Fraudster explains benefits of investing in Bitcoin
Upon clicking the link, Bandopadhyay encountered a message instructing her to contact a broker. When she reached out through the provided link, the broker emphasized the numerous benefits of investing in Bitcoin.
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The broker claimed that if Bandopadhyay invested ₹30,000 in Bitcoin, she would receive a profit ranging from ₹3 to 4 lakh. Subsequently, the broker sent her a link named coin.speedmininers.com and instructed her to register on it. After registration, Bandopadhyay was asked to deposit ₹30,000 into a Paytm account under the name Anjali Shubhamkumar, which she complied with.
Following this, the accused demanded additional payments of ₹60 and ₹30,000, both of which Bandopadhyay paid. After these transactions, the accused informed her that she had made a profit of ₹8.50 lakh from the bitcoins she had purchased.
Silver membership
Further, the accused informed Bandopadhyay that by depositing an additional ₹35,000, she would obtain silver membership, and she made this payment as well.
In total, the accused fraudulently obtained ₹1.95 lakh online from Bandopadhyay under various pretexts. Despite paying this amount, Bandopadhyay was told that she had a profit of ₹9.45 lakh, but when she attempted to withdraw the money, she was asked to pay an additional ₹43,000.
Realizing she had been deceived, Anushka Bandopadhyay reported the incident to 1930 and provided details about the Instagram account. A day later, she filed a complaint at Colaba Police Station.
Colaba Police is currently investigating the matter, registering an FIR under Section 34, 419, 420 of the IPC, and other relevant sections of the IT Act.
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