Recently, a person who works as a manager in a private company lost about Rs.4.6 crore in a span of about a month. He was in the habit of investing in crypto currencies and this lured him into an international racket.
As per Commissioner of Police Ch. Srikanth, the victim received a message from an unknown number in March, and he responded by saying that it was a wrong message to a wrong person. The person on the other side responded with a sorry, and after two or three more messages, both became friendly.
He did not realise that he was being sucked into an international crypto currency fraud. After the exchange of a few more messages, the victim disclosed that he was investing in crypto currency and the other person, posing as a woman, expressed a similar interest and struck an instant bond.
The other person encouraged the victim to invest in a new crypto account for better returns, which the victim started to do. He sold everything to invest in that account, as the statements showed that he was making huge returns, said Mr. Srikanth.
But one fine day when the victim wanted to sell, to get back some money, things turned sour and the woman demanded some extra payments under pretext of some tax. He then paid a few lakh rupees in the name of tax, as even his accountant advised him to do so and that was the end of the deal, as the perpetrators later severed all contacts. The man is now on the streets with his family.
“This is one area we are also concerned about, as crypto is a new thing which is enticing and also consists of many grey areas. And most importantly, we are unable to find the source, as it is difficult to locate a cyber criminal who is sitting in another country and committing the crime with a gadget that can be dispensed with,” explains the police officer.
