Retired bank manager loses Rs97 lakh in cyberfraud

Patna: A retired SBI chief manager, Amarendra Kumar Sinha, filed a complaint with Patna cyber police alleging that he was defrauded of Rs97 lakh in an online investment scam.

The fraud began shortly after his retirement on Aug 31, 2024, when he sought to invest his money. According to the complaint, Sinha became active on social media after retirement and came in contact with a woman, who claimed to be the CEO of a construction company in Mumbai, through an advertisement on social media.

The two exchanged WhatsApp numbers, Aadhaar cards and photos, building trust over several weeks. After this, Sinha invested money through several transactions. However, when he transferred a total of Rs97 lakh through several transactions, the woman stopped maintaining contact with him. Sinha then realised he had been defrauded and approached the Patna cyber police station on Tuesday.

Cyber DSP, Nitish Chandra Dhariya, said, “Sinha became active on social media post retirement. He was then contacted by a woman identifying herself as Sakshi Agarwal, who claimed to be the CEO of VV Construction, Mumbai. The two then exchanged WhatsApp numbers, Aadhaar cards and photos, building trust over several weeks.”

The DSP said a case has been filed in this regard.

Cyber DSP Dhariya confirmed that a case was registered and investigation is underway. “We are collecting details from Sinha regarding the fraud,” he said.

He urged people to exercise caution before investing online.