73-year-old Delhi man loses Rs 16 lakh in fake online trading scam

NEW DELHI: A 73-year-old resident of West Patel Nagar, Delhi, was defrauded of over Rs 16 lakh in a fake online trading scam.
The victim received a message on his WhatsApp number from a woman who introduced herself as a Senior Assistant with a private firm. She convinced the complainant to invest in online stock trading, promising high returns.
"She showed me false hopes of a 500% profit.Initially, she shared examples of stock market price hikes and asked if I was interested in investing. I then opened a link sent by them to create a personal equity trading account and submitted the registration form, as per their instructions," the complainant said.
He further said the woman assisted him in opening a personal institutional account using an invitation code she sent.
"After my account was opened and approved, she instructed me to deposit funds. Before doing so, I asked if the firm was registered with SEBI. She replied that the firm was registered for 30 years, was a trustworthy investment management company, and had its headquarters in the United States with an Indian office in Mumbai. She also mentioned their official website," the complainant added.
Following her assurances, he began investing as per their directions and deposited funds into the bank accounts provided by them.
Police said the complainant realised he was scammed after being asked to pay Rs 15 lakh as income tax on his alleged profits. He then filed a complaint with the police.
A case under section of cheating was registered.