Beware of electronic frauds, cops warn citizens

NASHIK: With the city witnessing a spurt in electronic frauds, police have urged citizens to exercise caution. There have been several cases when people were targeted by the fraudsters under the pretext of offering a helping hand.
The Deolali Camp police on Sunday registered a case against an unidentified person for allegedly hacking the bank account of Shankar Limbaji Salunkhe (62).The accused called up Salunkhe on August 10 and sought the details of his ATM card posing as a bank employee. Salunkhe realised that he has been robbed off Rs 48,000 only when he checked messages on his cellphone. Money was transferred from his account into an unknown account owned by the accused on August 10 and 11.
In another case registered at the Mumbai Naka police station, Vanita Pintu Raut (22) of Khodenagar alleged that Nitin Tanaji Gaikwad (10) stole Rs 38,000 from her. The accused allegedly offered to help the woman and swapped her ATM card with dummy a card. Gaikwad then withdrew cash from another ATM centre.
Ajay Shivshankar Gupta (30), a resident of Chehdi, lodged a complaint with the Nashik Road police on September 2 stating that cash worth Rs 48,728 was electronically transferred through the representatives of three different banks, who sought his bank account details in July.
Anil Pawar, senior police inspector with the technical analysis wing, said no bank employee will seek ATM pin number or other details and such phone calls should not be entertained. "Elderly citizens, who are offered help at banks, should refrain from seeking any assistance. Such individuals should ask relatives, family members or other trustworthy persons to accompany them to the banks," he added.
Cases over the years
2013: 18
2014: 30
2015: 38
2016: 15 (approx)