Mangaluru: Senior citizen duped of Rs 23.30 lakh in online investment scam; complaint filed

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangaluru, Oct 1, 2025: A case has been reported in Mangaluru where a senior citizen was cheated of ₹23.30 lakh through an online investment scam.

The incident occurred on August 16, 2025, when the victim was checking WhatsApp messages on his mobile phone and received a message from an unknown number (+91 77372 14988). The message contained information about an investment opportunity.

Trusting the advertisement related to the stock market in the message, the victim clicked on the link and registered on the app by providing his name, mobile number, and email ID.

The scammers, posing as investment advisors, convinced the victim to invest money to gain high returns through stock market trading. Between August 22 and September 15, the victim transferred a total of ₹23.30 lakh in multiple installments via UPI, IMPS, and RTGS from his SBI bank account to various bank accounts provided by the fraudsters, according to the complaint filed with the CEN (Cyber Economic and Narcotics) police.

When the victim later asked for the return of his invested amount, the scammers demanded an additional ₹11,55,542 as "tax" payment. It was at this point that the victim realized he had been duped. He has filed a complaint with the CEN Crime Police stating that he was scammed under the guise of a fake online stock market investment.

Woman Also Cheated in Separate Case:

In another incident, a woman lodged a complaint with the Urwa police stating she lost ₹9.10 lakh after falling for a fake investment scheme. She had come across a video on Facebook that appeared to show Sudha Murthy and Nirmala Sitharaman promoting an investment opportunity. After clicking the link and registering, she was gradually persuaded to invest money, ultimately losing ₹9.10 lakh in multiple transactions.