Online Fraud: College Dropouts From Gujarat Collects Whopping Rs 60 Crore In 3 Months
Two college dropouts from Gujarat has gathered Rs. 60 crore in three months by cheating people via online scam. The Mumbai police on Friday arrested Rupesh Pravikumar Thakkar (33) and Pankajbhai Govardhan Oad, from Gujarat”s Gandhinagar and seized Rs. 1.1 crore in an bank maintained by both. As per the police reports they cheated people at the guise of providing a part time online job.
Police inquiry started when a 19-year-old student of Veermata Jijabai Technological Institute (VJTI), Krish, filed a complaint in October stating that he has been tricked by unknown fraudsters. He told that they approached him via WhatsApp and offered online work in exchange for good amount of money. The fraudsters agreeing better returns asked him to invest money in different accounts, and in various installments he deposited Rs. 2.45 lakh. Though Krish got messages of the money he earned, when he found that it was unable to withdraw the money he realised it was a scam.
Mathunga police caught the culprits by tracing the bank accounts in which money had been deposited. Besides Police has recovered 33 debit and credit cards, 32 cheque books of various banks across India, six mobile phone and 28 SIM cards, fake agreements and other documents, TOI reports. By scrutinising 32 bank accounts, investigators came to know that the cyber fraudsters has collected transactions amounting to Rs. 60 crore. The victims spread across different states, police adds.
The accused has been lodged under Indian Penal Code Section 420 (cheating) and sections of the Information Technology Act, and the investigation still continues.
