11 September,2024 05:50 PM IST | Thane | mid-day online correspondent
Representational Pic/File
A doctor from Navi Mumbai in Maharashtra was defrauded of Rs 26.52 lakh by a cyber fraudsters gang that threatened to implicate him in a fictitious crime involving money laundering and terrorism, the police said on Wednesday, reported the PTI.
According to the police, on August 26, the doctor, a resident of Ghansoli, received a call from individuals posing as customs officers. They told him he had sent a parcel to Dubai which contained objectionable goods, including police uniforms and drugs, said senior inspector Gajanan Kadam of Navi Mumbai's cyber police station, where a complaint was lodged by the victim, as per the PTI.
The fraudsters also informed him that they were referring his case to a police station in Mumbai's Andheri area. The scammers claimed his bank account was linked to terrorist activities and that it contained laundered money, said the official, citing the complaint, according to the PTI.
They threatened he would be arrested for sedition. The victim was coerced into transferring Rs 26.52 lakh online to various bank accounts allegedly to settle the fabricated charges and clear the supposed money laundering issues, said the police officer.
However, the gang continued to demand more money.
Realising that he had been scammed, the victim reported the fraud to the cyber police station.
The police have registered an FIR against unidentified fraudsters under various sections of the Information Technology Act, and launched a probe to track down the perpetrators and recover the stolen funds, the inspector added.
Man booked for duping home buyers of over Rs 85 lakh in Navi Mumbai
Meanwhile, in an another incident, the police have registered a case of cheating against a man and his firm for allegedly duping nine home buyers to the tune of more than Rs 85 lakh at Koparkhairane in Navi Mumbai, an official said on Tuesday, reported the PTI.
The case was filed against Bajrang Tukaram Patil and his company, S B Enterprises, under sections 420 (cheating) and 406 (criminal breach of trust) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) at Koparkhairane police station on September 9.
"The complaint alleges that between 2019 and January 2024, Patil deceived nine home buyers of Rs 85,23,000. The victims had paid the money to Patil for buying the houses. Despite promises and follow-up, none of the victims received the houses and did not get any response from the accused," he said.
One of the victims finally lodged a complaint on Monday, following which the police launched a probe.
(with PTI inputs)
