Mobile shop owner falls prey to crypto fraud

Ahmedabad: A 34-year-old mobile phone repair shop owner from Bopal has alleged that he was cheated of Rs 5.56 lakh after being lured into a cryptocurrency investment scheme. A complaint was registered at the Bopal police station on Wednesday.The complainant, Shaktisinh Thakor, told police that he received a WhatsApp message from an international number on Aug 9, 2025. The sender, identifying herself as Maya Sharma, persuaded him to invest in cryptocurrency promising high returns.Thakor was directed to register on a website called "MexcCrypto" through a link and asked to pay a registration fee of Rs 9,500. Trusting the offer, he transferred the amount on Sep 28, 2025.Over the next two months, he was allegedly prompted to deposit more money for trading. Between Sep 30 and Nov 22, 2025, he transferred amount totalling Rs 5.56 lakh.Though the platform showed notional profits in US dollars, he could not withdraw funds. When asked to pay Rs 5.29 lakh as "tax" to release Rs 12 lakh, he realised the fraud and alerted cybercrime helpline 1930. Police are probing the case.