Mumbai, July 15: The number of cyberfraud cases has increased, and thieves are now even targeting the police. Two police officers from the Nirmal Nagar police station were recently the victims of internet fraud and lost a total of Rs 1,27,650. On July 11, the Nirmal Nagar Police Station received a complaint about the incident, and a case was subsequently filed against two people accused of defrauding the cops.

The scam was experienced by two police constables, Vijay Bhosale (47) and Ranjeet Jambhale (47), according to the First Information Report (FIR). On June 7, Jambhale accepted a friend request from Assistant Police Inspector Santosh Kamble's hacked Facebook profile. Jambhale then provided the fraudster with his mobile number upon request. Online Fraud in Mumbai: Woman Duped of Rs 10 Lakh After Being Lured for Work From Home Scam and Bitcoin Investment.

Modus Operandi

On June 12, Jambhale got a Facebook message from the con artist posing as a Santosh Kumar, a CRPF officer and one of his close friends. The faker gave Jambhale Santosh Kumar's contact information and stated that he wanted to sell furniture for less money. On the same day, Jambhale started corresponding with the fictitious CRPF officer on WhatsApp.

Jambhale received an SMS from an unidentified number purporting to be CRPF officer Santosh Kumar during their talk. Santosh Kamble, according to the fake, had given him Jambhale's phone number. The scammer told Jambhale that he had been relocated from Pune to Srinagar and was attempting to sell furniture while posing as Santosh Kumar. He supplied images of the furnishings and a 60,000 price. Police policeman Vijay Bhosale, a coworker of Jambhale's, was there and indicated an interest in buying the furniture. They agreed to purchase it together.

The fraudster told Jambhale to transfer the money to Rakesh Adhivashi's account, stating that Adhivashi worked for the CRPF, and gave Jambhale a photo of the CRPF officer's identity card over WhatsApp while continuing to pose as Santosh Kumar.

Vijay Bhosale then used Gpay to make three subsequent transactions of 40,000, 9,900, and 10,000 rupees to the fraudster's account. They were told that their friend's Activa scooter will be sold for 25,000 and that the fraudster had acknowledged collecting 60,000. Through WhatsApp, the scammer supplied images of the Activa. Sachin Bhosale, a cousin of Vijay Bhosale, sent $25,000 to the fraudster's account after expressing interest in purchasing the Activa. Cyber Fraud in Mumbai: Man Tries to Book Doctor’s Appointment Online, Duped of Rs 33000 in Bandra.

The victims became suspicious of the fraud after making several payments. A case has been registered, and the local police have launched an investigation into the matter.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 15, 2023 09:10 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).