Haryana Man lost Rs 4 crore to fraudsters after downloading a link from WhatsApp

A retired brigadier named Mahendra Singh, a resident of DLF valley in Haryana’s Panchkula, had no idea that he was trapped when he received a WhatsApp notification regarding his stock market investment. Reports say he received a message on WhatsApp giving him some tips on investing in the stock market. The message also included a link to the application. He was asked to download the app from this link. It is written that by downloading the application from there, you can earn additional income on the stock market. Mahendra Singh believed the news and downloaded the app. He initially invested over 1 crore rupees (approximately $125,000). Later, his wife also joined in the investment and together they invested a total of Rs 4.2 crore (approximately $5,30,000).

Everything seemed fine for a while. There were constant updates and assurances. When the brigadier wanted to withdraw his investment, he became suspicious. For the withdrawal, the fraudsters demanded a commission of 65 lakh rupees (approximately $81,250). This demand made the brigadier realize that he had been deceived. He lodged a complaint with the Haryana Cyber ​​Crime Police.

After receiving the complaint, Haryana police started an investigation and found that it was part of a larger international scam. According to the report, the creators of this complex cybercrime were based in the United States and the United Kingdom. These bandits were conducting a well-planned operation. They transferred money to the bank accounts of residents of border villages in India. From there they transferred the money to each other. For this work, they also gave account holders a commission ranging from 4,000 to 10,000 rupees for every 1 lakh rupees (about $1,250). The investigation into this matter is still ongoing.

Reports suggest that two persons identified as Manpreet Singh and Karnail Singh were arrested recently. These people are residents of villages along the Indo-Pakistani border and have been placed in police custody for four days for further investigation. Before their arrest, four other suspects had already been sent to prison.

How to stay safe?

According to reports, you should be careful with random messages or phone calls, especially those offering financial advice. Before clicking any link or downloading any app, check the authenticity of the source.