A youth from the Campierganj area was duped of ₹18 lakh in a cyber fraud after accepting a friend request on Facebook and being lured into a fake online trading scheme promising high returns. A case has been registered at the cyber police station, and an investigation into bank accounts and digital transactions is underway.
The complainant, Anand Prakash Yadav of Sahavankhor village, said he received a friend request from a profile named “Nidhi Mishra”. After initial chats, the woman shifted the conversation to WhatsApp and offered to help him earn substantial profits through online trading. He was later sent a link titled “Hizcoin Shop”, through which he was asked to create a trading ID.
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To build credibility, the accused referred to a person named “Harsh Goenka” as an expert trader who would generate high returns. The victim was first persuaded to invest ₹50,000. Soon after, he was shown a notional profit of ₹57 lakh on the platform and told that the amount could be transferred to his bank account only after paying a ‘commission’ of ₹18 lakh.
Lured by the promise of large gains, the victim transferred ₹18 lakh in instalments through RTGS, UPI and other modes to accounts in Bank of Baroda, UCO Bank, ICICI Bank, Punjab National Bank and State Bank of India. After the payments, the accused became unreachable and no profit was credited, leading him to realise he had been defrauded.
Police said the fraudsters used a fake social media profile, WhatsApp calls and a bogus trading platform to gain the victim’s trust. Initial small investments were used to create confidence, followed by fabricated profit figures to extract a larger amount.
A complaint has been filed at the cyber police station, and technical analysis of the trading link, mobile numbers and transaction trail is in progress. Efforts are being made to freeze the beneficiary accounts and recover the money.
Cyber experts have warned users not to trust unsolicited investment offers received through social media and to verify the authenticity of trading platforms before transferring funds.
Police have urged the public not to pay any commission or processing fee for withdrawing profits from online trading platforms and to avoid clicking on suspicious links. They advised immediate reporting of such incidents to the cyber helpline 1930 to improve the chances of fund recovery.
The investigation is ongoing to determine whether the fraud network is operating from within the country or from abroad.
About the author – Ayesha Aayat is a law student and contributor covering cybercrime, online frauds, and digital safety concerns. Her writing aims to raise awareness about evolving cyber threats and legal responses.
