Online Fraud: Woman Loses Rs 80 Lakh to Conman She Met on Matrimonial App

Lucknow, February 16: An employee of a multi-national company lost Rs 80 lakh to a conman she met on a matrimonial application, who even staged his death. According to the complaint, the woman met the man on the app in 2019, when he introduced himself as Sameer Chadha. There was telephonic and online communication for over months, during which he posed as a highly successful professional owning property in Bangalore and Noida. Pig Butchering Scam: Nearly 66% of Indians Fell Victim to Online Dating Scams Past Year, 81% of Them Experienced Financial Loss, Says Report

The woman got impressed and considered him for marriage, said the police on the basis of the complaint. The man fabricated a story about quitting his job and said that he needed assistance to pay EMIs of loans for his car and flat, and talked the woman into transferring a total of Rs 80 lakh to him through Paytm between 2020 and 2023. Central Government Blocks About 1.4 Lakh Mobile Handsets Linked to Cybercrime, Financial Frauds

She got suspicious when while making a payment, she was notified about receiver’s PAN card identifying him as Lalit Sai Krishna. Blocked phone numbers further fuelled her doubts. Eventually, she received messages claiming that Sameer was dead and, and on the address that he had shared, she found a liquor shop in Bengaluru. The police spokesman said that the investigations in the case had been initiated by the cyber cell.