Santacruz businessman loses ₹21 lakh to cyber gangs in 2 years; probe begins

A businessman from Santacruz has approached the police claiming that he had lost nearly ₹21 lakh to three cyber gangs in the last two years. Officers of the cyber police station (west region), located at Bandra Kurla Complex, have begun investigation into the complaint.

According to the complainant, on May 9, 2020, he received a WhatsApp message from an unknown number informing him that he had won a Facebook star lottery worth ₹22 lakh. The sender, one Pradeep, however, asked him to first pay the registration charges, taxes, and other fees totaling ₹2.44 lakh.

Pradeep’s senior officer Ali and his assistant Namita Dey also contacted the complainant. Ali even sent him a photo of the cheque for ₹22 lakh issued in his name. Convinced, the complainant made the payment. When they demanded more money to process the lottery claim, the complainant refused and instead asked them to return his ₹2.44 lakh, but got nothing, the police said.