Lucknow: A doctor based in Vrindavan Yojana has allegedly been duped of ₹3.52 crore by cyber fraudsters who lured him with promises of high returns on investments in shares and initial public offerings (IPOs).The fraudsters initially allowed him to withdraw profits to gain his confidence, but later demanded various fees on the pretext of processing withdrawals and activating his trading account.Victim Dr Abhay Gupta, a resident of Himalayan Enclave Phase-II in Vrindavan Yojana-4 under the PGI police station area, lodged an FIR at the cyber crime police station on Friday. Police are examining the financial transactions and other details provided by the complainant.According to Inspector Alok Rao, in-charge of the police station, Dr Gupta came into contact with a company on Aug 10 after being offered an opportunity to earn substantial profits by investing in shares of listed companies and IPOs through its platform. The company allegedly assured him that investments made through the platform could generate attractive returns. Dr Gupta initially invested a small amount and was able to withdraw the profits. This helped the operators gain his confidence, following which he began investing larger sums, including ₹10 lakh and ₹25 lakh in individual transactions.The company reportedly assigned a woman identified as Ananya Kulkarni to manage his account and guide him through the investment process.According to the complaint, the doctor was initially permitted to withdraw amounts of up to ₹2 lakh. However, when he subsequently attempted to withdraw the larger profits displayed in his trading account, the company demanded a service fee equivalent to 20 per cent of the amount. Despite depositing the demanded amount, his withdrawal request remained pending.On Sep 18, Dr Gupta attempted to withdraw ₹4.98 crore that was reflected in his account. However, the request was not processed, and his account was subsequently frozen. The company allegedly cited suspicious transactions as the reason for restricting access to the account and instructed him to complete the Know Your Customer (KYC) verification process.The complainant alleged that after completing the KYC formalities, he was informed that approximately ₹26 crore was reflected in his trading account. He was then asked to deposit 10 per cent of this amount — ₹2.60 crore — purportedly to facilitate access to the funds.After he deposited the demanded amount, the account was reactivated, and he managed to withdraw ₹50,000.However, when he attempted another withdrawal, the account was allegedly frozen again. The operators subsequently demanded additional payments under different pretexts, claiming that the amounts were necessary to release the money displayed in the account. According to the complaint, the repeated demands for withdrawal-related charges eventually resulted in a total loss of ₹3.52 crore to the doctor.Police are now examining the transaction details submitted by the complainant to establish the money trail and identify those involved in the alleged fraud. Inspector Alok Rao confirmed that the victim had provided details of the financial transactions and said the matter was under investigation.
