Two Coimbatore men lose Rs 21.45 lakh to online fraudsters

COIMBATORE: Two Coimbatore men have lost a total of Rs 21.45 lakh to online fraudsters in two separate incidents recently. The city cyber crime police have registered two cases.

K Sabarivasan, 35, of Veerakeralam in the city lost Rs 7.75 lakh to a cyber fraudster. Police said Sabarivasan saw an advertisement while watching a YouTube video in May. When he clicked on the link on the advertisement, his mobile number was added to a Telegram group.

A member of the Telegram group advised him to invest in online trading and assured him huge returns. Believing his words, Sabarivasan transferred Rs 7.75 lakh to different bank accounts in 12 transactions from May 15 to June 18. However, he was unable to retrieve his money and realized that he had been cheated. He lodged a complaint with the cyber crime police.

In another incident, a cyber fraudster cheated V Pateesh Pravin of Nanjundapuram in the city to the tune of Rs 13.70 lakh.

"Pateesh, working as a building contractor, received a WhatsApp message from an unknown number stating that he could earn high profits through online trading by investing in a trading firm named ‘Making Money.’ He opened the link and transferred Rs 13.70 lakh in 13 transactions to different bank accounts. When he tried to withdraw the money, the fraudster asked him to deposit more money citing various reasons," a police officer said.

Realizing that he had been cheated, Pateesh lodged a complaint with the city cyber crime police on Tuesday.

Further investigations are under way.