Pune: Befriending a “woman” on a dating application and following her instructions to invest in forex trading proved costly for a retired HR consultant (48) from Bavdhan.The complainant was allegedly cheated of Rs88.19 lakh by online fraudsters.According to the Pimpri Chinchwad cyber police, the fraud took place between June 2025 and June 2026. The police registered a case on Friday.Sub-inspector Sagar Poman of the Pimpri Chinchwad cyber police told TOI, “The HR consultant met this fraudster, posing as woman on a dating app. Claiming to be a resident of Delhi, they shared their contact of a messaging application with him.”The police said, the fraudster expressed a willingness to meet him and persuaded him to invest in forex trading, promising returns of around 40%. They sent him a link to an online trading application, trusting which, the complainant downloaded the application.“He initially invested Rs35 lakh through the application. In a few days, the application displayed that his investment grew to 149,000 US dollars, which was shown as being over Rs14 crore,” Poman said.“When the complainant decided to withdraw his profits, the fraudster told him, he would have to pay taxes in US dollars, along with processing fees, transfer charges and other expenses. Believing them, the complainant transferred over Rs53.19 lakh to various bank accounts provided by the impostor,” he added.“After receiving the money, the communication stopped, and the application also stopped functioning,” Poman said.
