Mumbai Woman, 62, Duped Of Rs 7.88 Crore In Stock Investment Fraud

A 62-year-old housewife from Mumbai has allegedly been duped of Rs 7.88 crore by cyber fraudsters after being lured to invest in the stock market for high returns, police said.

The fraudsters posed as representatives of a reputed financial services company to cheat the woman, resident of Bandra area here, over the last two months, an official from West Region Cyber Police Station said on Monday.

The victim, in her police complaint, said she first received a message on WhatsApp from an unknown number. The sender, identifying as a woman, claimed to be the assistant of a senior officer of the company and initiated a conversation about stock investments.

The victim was then provided with the company officer's contact number and a link to a website. She was subsequently added to a WhatsApp group and introduced to another individual, who also claimed to be associated with the finance company, the official said.

On the woman's insistence, the victim transferred a total of Rs 7,88,87,000 into multiple bank accounts over a period of time, the police said.

When she attempted to withdraw her funds, she was asked to deposit an additional 10 per cent of the amount. Sensing something suspicious, the woman decided to inquire which indicated the fraud.

Based on the woman's grievance lodged on an online cyber complaint portal, the police have registered a case against unidentified persons under relevant legal provisions and initiated a detailed investigation into the matter, the official added. 

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