A 65-year-old businessman from Mumbai’s Powai has come forward alleging he was defrauded of ₹52 lakh in a sophisticated Bitcoin scam masterminded by a woman posing as a friend from Japan on Facebook. The West Cyber police had initially received his complaint, and as the defrauded amount was less than ₹1 crore, they forwarded it to the Andheri police station, which registered a case against the woman and her accomplices. Police say the fraud unfolded over a month and incorporated a false sense of trust and legitimacy built through repeated social media interaction.
From Online Friendship to High-Stakes Investment
According to the police complaint, the victim received a Facebook friend request in June from a profile featuring a woman’s photograph and claiming employment with IBM in Hong Kong. Believing it authentic, he accepted the request, and conversations soon shifted to Facebook Messenger and phone calls. Her soft-spoken demeanor helped win his trust. She claimed she would soon join IBM’s cryptocurrency trading platform in Japan as a manager and spoke frequently about the lucrative returns possible through Bitcoin investments. Initially hesitant, the businessman was gradually persuaded. She sent him a link to create an ID on what appeared to be a legitimate trading platform and provided bank account details for transfers. Between late June and July 17, he invested ₹52 lakh. The app displayed a staggering virtual balance of ₹10.3 crore, seemingly proof of massive profits.
The Demand That Unraveled the Fraud
When the victim sought to withdraw his “profits,” the woman demanded a 30% tax payment first. This request raised suspicion. After consulting relatives, he realized the platform and its operators were fraudulent. The businessman contacted the national cybercrime helpline (1930) before filing a formal complaint. Andheri police have registered a case under the following sections-
- 66 (d) (dishonestly receiving stolen computer resource or communication device), of the Information Technology Act, 2000; and
- 318 (4) (cheating),319 (2) (cheating by personation),336 (2) and 336 (3) (forgery),338 (forgery of valuable security documents), 340 (2) (using forged electronic document as genuine) and 61 (2) (criminal conspiracy) of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.
Police Trace Digital Trail
Investigators are examining transaction records to identify and locate the perpetrators. They are trying to ascertain the identities of and trace the accused through the complainant’s financial transactions. Authorities believe the scheme is part of a broader cybercrime network exploiting cryptocurrency’s anonymity and social engineering tactics.