Crypto fraud: In Haryana, Panchkula man loses Rs 35 lakh in just 3 weeks

Panchkula: A resident of Pinjore has alleged that he lost over Rs 35 lakh over a period of three weeks to a cyber fraud in which he was promised high returns to an investment.
Vivekanand Verma, a resident of Anand Garden in Pinjore's Dharmpur Colony, filed the police complaint on March 15, but the FIR was registered on Wednesday.
Verma alleged that he received a phone call on Sep 27, 2024. The caller, who introduced herself as a representative of a cryptocurrency platform, lured him with promises of high returns. Verma was instructed to download Telegram, a communication app, where he interacted with a person named Abhishek Kumar, who claimed to be an expert.
Abhishek guided Verma through various transactions, convincing him to make several deposits into different bank accounts. Initially, Verma paid Rs 200 for "joining" and was later encouraged to invest Rs 10,100, with the promise that his investment would grow to Rs 15,000. Verma was later asked to pay more money for withdrawals, citing excuses and penalties for alleged mistakes in withdrawal attempts. In total, the fraudster managed to trick Verma into transferring Rs 35.12 lakh.
through various transactions between Sep 27 and Oct 14, 2024. Despite multiple attempts to recover his money, including contacting the company via email, Verma received no response. Realising he was scammed, he filed a complaint on the cyber crime portal.
A probe, led by sub-inspector Malkit Singh of cybercrime police station in Sector 20, has been initiated.