Noida: Three Noida residents were allegedly cheated of nearly Rs 1.4 crore across three separate cases where fraudsters lured them with promises of hefty returns from stock market investments and initial public offerings (IPOs). In all three cases, the accused used social media and messaging platforms to contact and lure the victims.The accused also allegedly impersonated reputed financial institutions to gain their target’s confidence. The victims were initially shown small profits or allowed limited withdrawals to build trust before being persuaded to invest larger amounts.In the first case, a Sector 78 resident told police that the accused contacted him via Facebook Messenger in Sept last year with an offer of earning daily profits through stock market investments. He was subsequently added to a WhatsApp group and asked to transfer money to multiple bank accounts.The cons initially let him withdraw Rs 53,000 of the money before asking him to reinvest it. Between Oct 16 and Nov 13, the victim transferred more than Rs 72 lakh. He was later asked to deposit an additional Rs 18.87 lakh and then another Rs 30 lakh for IPO allotments. The cons threatened to freeze his earlier investments if he refused. This made him realise he had been cheated and he filed a police complaint.In the second case, another resident of Sector 78 alleged that he was lured into investing Rs 52.49 lakh through a WhatsApp group and a mobile application named TCG Plus. The app falsely claimed links with Tata Capital and Tata Securities. When the victim attempted to withdraw Rs 5 lakh, he was asked to pay a 20% service charge and another Rs 21.33 lakh as tax. He then received a fake income tax notice, leading him to realise the platform was fake. He subsequently approached cops.In the third case, a resident of Sector 108 was lured by cons via Telegram under the pretext of gaining high returns. He transferred Rs 13.12 lakh to different bank accounts but was later unable to access his ‘invested’ money and gained no returns. He then filed a police complaint in the case.According to police, cyber criminals commonly exploit the names of reputed companies and create fake investment platforms to deceive people. Bank accounts, mobile numbers, WhatsApp chats and financial transactions linked to the three cases are being examined, police said.Police also advised the public to avoid investing through unsolicited social media messages or messaging groups and to verify the authenticity of investment platforms and regulatory approvals before transferring money.
