E-Paper
Army Major in Lucknow loses ₹4.8 lakh to online investment fraud
In her complaint, Major Pooja Yadav, a resident of the Cantonment area here, stated that she was added to a WhatsApp group called ‘532 DBS Stock Profit Growth Wealth Group’, where members were regularly given stock trading tips and investment advice. The group was allegedly administered by individuals who claimed to be market experts and encouraged participants to invest increasing amounts by showcasing initial profits.
A serving army officer was allegedly duped of nearly ₹4.8 lakh on the pretext of online investment after being added to a WhatsApp group that promised high returns through stock market trading tips, police said on Thursday.
An FIR was lodged in this connection at Cantonment police station here under Section 66D of the Information Technology Act on January 4, but the matter came to the fore on Thursday.
In her complaint, Major Pooja Yadav, a resident of the Cantonment area here, stated that she was added to a WhatsApp group called ‘532 DBS Stock Profit Growth Wealth Group’, where members were regularly given stock trading tips and investment advice. The group was allegedly administered by individuals who claimed to be market experts and encouraged participants to invest increasing amounts by showcasing initial profits.
Major Yadav alleged that she initially invested smaller sums and was shown returns for about 28 days, which built her confidence in the scheme. Subsequently, she invested larger amounts over time, transferring money on the assurance of higher profits. She claimed to have invested around ₹4.8 lakh in total.
“However, when I attempted to withdraw the money, the group administrators allegedly demanded an additional payment of around ₹2.8 lakh, citing it as a mandatory charge or processing fee,” she alleged. “When I refused, I was removed from the WhatsApp group,” she added.
Realising that she had been defrauded, Major Yadav approached the police and lodged a written complaint.
Cantt SHO Gurmeet Kaur said that the accused are currently unidentified and efforts are ongoing to trace the mobile numbers, bank accounts and digital footprints linked to the said WhatsApp group. A senior officer has been tasked with conducting a probe, while cybercrime experts are assisting in tracking the money trail.
