Berhampur: A medical staff in Berhampur allegedly lost over Rs 20.50 lakh through fake online trading and investment schemes. The victim, a 30-year-old man, had transferred money online to a trading app from June 10 to July 11, police said.A case has been booked under Sections 318 (4) of the BNS Act and 66D of the IT Act at the cyber police station here, following an FIR by the victim on Friday. Police are investigating the case to identify the fraudulent trading company and try to recovery the money. A police officer said they are also trying to freeze the bank accounts of the firms, suspecting their involvement in other online frauds.Police added that at least four bank accounts were involved in the case and verification was on to establish the state of those accounts.Last month, the victim received a call on a social media platform and received a link which appeared to be from a popular online trading firm. The caller assured him of getting a good profit from his investment. Initially he received a profitable return, which encouraged him to invest more.From June 10 to July 11, he invested over Rs 22.50 lakh and transferred the money to four accounts of different banks as per the direction of the caller. Recently, he tried withdrawing Rs 80,000 bonus towards his investment, as assured by the caller but he could neither access the funds nor the bank accounts.The scammers had assured to give him Rs 3 lakh against an investment of Rs 1 lakh.“We have repeatedly urged people not to invest their money on any online trading firm without proper verification. Despite this, people continue to fall prey to cybercriminals. If anyone identifies himself as an officer of TRAI or CBI and starts threatening you, immediately bring it to the police’s notice,” Berhampur SP Saravana Vivek M said.
