HYDERABAD: The message arrived on WhatsApp, promising access to stock market profits through a trading application. Ten days later, ₹2.58 crore had vanished, leaving behind a police complaint in Hyderabad and another case file in India’s expanding ledger of digital fraud.
A Message That Promised Market Access
The complaint was filed in Hyderabad after a former Indian Police Service officer’s wife reported that she had been defrauded of ₹2.58 crore through what she believed was a legitimate stock market trading application. According to the account she gave police, the first contact came through WhatsApp, where unknown individuals sent her advertisements promoting online stock investments.
The messages, officials said, presented themselves as routine investment pitches—polished enough to appear credible, informal enough to feel personal. The woman was persuaded that the application offered a genuine pathway into the stock market, and over the next ten days, she transferred large sums of money to accounts controlled by the alleged fraudsters.
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Investigators say the transfers were made in stages, each framed as part of an investment process facilitated through the application. No irregularity was apparent at the outset, the complaint states, and the transactions were carried out under the assumption that the funds were being placed in market instruments.
Transfers Without Returns
The turning point came when the promised returns failed to materialise. After a short period without updates or payouts, the woman realised she had been deceived. Attempts to seek clarification yielded no results, and communication with those who had contacted her stopped.
At that stage, she approached the police and formally lodged a complaint, detailing the sequence of WhatsApp communications, the advertisements she had received, and the transfers she had made in the belief that they constituted investments. Police officials confirmed that the cumulative amount lost was ₹2.58 crore.
The case has been registered as an instance of online fraud linked to a stock trading application, a category of cybercrime that law enforcement agencies say has been growing in volume and sophistication.
Police Investigation Underway
Based on the complaint, local police in Hyderabad have begun an investigation and are attempting to trace the individuals behind the scheme. Officers said they are examining digital trails connected to the WhatsApp communications and the bank accounts to which the money was transferred.
At present, the suspects have not been identified publicly, and no arrests have been announced. Investigators said they are working to establish where the fraudulent operation originated and whether the same network may be linked to similar cases.
Officials emphasised that the inquiry remains ongoing, with efforts focused on locating the perpetrators and recovering funds, if possible.
