Mumbai: Online fraudsters dupe man trying to get refund of Rs 2.9 lakh

The victim was asked to share his bank details. Representation pic

A 59-year-old man was duped of Rs 2.95 lakh while trying to claim a Rs 14,000 refund after his flight was cancelled. The Meghwadi police, acting in the nick of time, managed to recover Rs 1.25 lakh, according to a police officer. The cops froze the UPI app wallet into which the money had been transferred.

The complainant, a retired home department official, had booked four return flight tickets from Sindhudurg, but due to some reason, the flight got cancelled on April 12. He tried to obtain a refund by calling a customer care number on an online portal on April 19. He subsequently received a call from a mobile number.

The person on the other end asked the former official for his bank details to refund the amount, but within a couple of minutes of sharing the information, the complainant received a series of messages informing him that Rs 98,691, Rs 1,25,570, Rs 35,999, Rs 21,990 and Rs 12,999 had been transferred from his account.

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When the complainant dialled the same number, no one picked up. He then rushed to Meghwadi police station and registered the complaint, the officer added. The sums of money had been transferred to numerous accounts via UPI.

The complainant told mid-day, "It was telephonic hypnotism. The online banking system should be stopped immediately and the old system - which was much safer - must be brought back. If agencies are not able to trace and seize stolen money immediately, what is the point?"

An officer attached to the Meghwadi police station said, "We recovered about Rs 1.25 lakh on the time and as for the remaining amount, we have to send letters seeking details about the accounts into which the complainant's money was transferred."