Mumbai man loses Rs 2.16 lakh in online 'task' fraud

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A 28-year-old Mumbai man was duped of Rs 2.16 lakh in online 'task' fraud by online fraudsters, a Mumbai police official said on Monday, reported news agency PTI.

The Mumbai man, who works with a supply chain financing firm, was cheated between Friday and Saturday after a woman sent him a WhatsApp message claiming he could earn Rs 2,000 to Rs 5,000 through part time work and then added him in a Telegram group, the official said, reported PTI.

"After earning sums of Rs 150 and Rs 200 for small tasks, they asked him to deposit amounts ranging from Rs 5,000 to Rs 18,400 for higher level assignments. He was told he had selected wrong tasks and was asked to deposit Rs 1.25 lakh," the official said, reported PTI.

"After he was told to deposit another Rs 2 lakh, he realised he was being cheated. On his complaint at Colaba police station, a case under IT Act and IPC was registered. Efforts are on to nab the cyber fraudsters," he said, reported PTI.

In another case, the Mumbai police have registered a case against a lawyer for allegedly forging documents to appear as a public prosecutor before the Bombay High Court and other courts in the city in multiple cases against a builder, an official said on Monday, reported PTI.

Based on a complaint lodged by builder Sanjay Punamiya, the police on Sunday registered a case under sections 420 (cheating) and 465 (forgery) and other relevant provisions of the IPC against lawyer Shekhar Jagtap, builder Shyamsunder Agrawal, Sharad Agrawal and Kishore Bhalerao, deputy secretary of the state home department, and others, the official said, reported PTI.

Punamiya was arrested in July 2021 in the Rs 15 crore extortion case registered against former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh and others at Marine Drive police station, reported PTI.

The complainant has alleged that after his arrest in the Marine Drive case, Jagtap was present before the court on July 22, 2021, to represent Shyamsunder Agrawal as a private lawyer.

During the second hearing in the case, the accused lawyer submitted a letter before the court, which mentioned that he was appointed as a special public prosecutor in the case and in another case registered against gangster Chhota Shakeel, Agrawal and others, the official said quoting the first information report, reported PTI.

As per the FIR, Jagtap posed as a special public prosecutor and appeared for eight hearings in the high court, reported PTI.

The complainant has alleged that the accused lawyer created hurdles in the investigation to help Shyamsunder Agrawal and others in the case, the official said.

Punamiya used the Right to Information (RTI) and requested information about the cases Jagtap was assigned to appear as a special public prosecutor, the FIR stated, reported PTI.

The home department, in its reply in August 2023, stated that Jagtap was appointed as a special public prosecutor for two extortion cases registered at Marine Drive and Mumbai Crime Branch's Unit-9, and the appearance was limited to these two cases at the Quilla court as well, but he attended the sessions court and cheated the court and the government, the official said, reported PTI.

The accused advocate appeared as a special public prosecutor in the high court, sessions court and Thane district court by producing forged documents, and thereby cheated the state government, he said.

Jagtap, meanwhile, claimed that he was appointed by the concerned authorities to appear as a special public prosecutor in the cases he appeared in, reported PTI.

"I also received letters from the law and judiciary department ratifying my appointment as special public prosecutor," he said, reported PTI.

(With inputs from PTI)