Man duped of Rs 5.34 lakh by cyber thugs in Himachal's Hamirpur

Hamirpur (HP), Aug 3 (PTI) A resident here fell victim to a cyber fraud after he was threatened of arrest by fraudsters, who, imposing as cyber police officials, claimed his Aadhaar card was being used in various illegal activities, officials said on Saturday.

The victim lost Rs 5.34 lakh during the fraud but the amount has been recovered by police, who said efforts are on to nab the accused.

According to Bal Chand Rajput, a resident of Galod in Hamirpur district, he received a call on July 23 from someone claiming to be an employee of FedEx Courier Service.

The caller informed Rajput that an illegal parcel, which was being sent to Taiwan, has been seized by the Customs Department and it has been found that his Aadhaar card was used to make the shipping payment of Rs 15,250, Rajput stated in his complaint filed on July 26.

Moments later, he received another call on WhatsApp where a person, claiming to be the DCP Crime Branch, informed Rajput that his "Aadhaar card has been used in 18 different accounts, which are related to underworld and 'hawala' businesses", the complainant added.

That caller also informed Rajput that the CBI and RBI officials will investigate all his accounts and, in case, any evidence of illegal activities are found then he can be sentenced to seven to nine years of imprisonment, Rajput said in the complaint.

Fearing arrest, Rajput transferred Rs 5.34 lakh to the account shared by the fraudsters over the phone call, the victim said.

Superintendent of Police (SP) Hamirpur Bhagat Singh said the cyber crime cell followed up on Rajput's complaint and managed to get the amount refunded in his account within five days.

"The police immediately freezed the accounts in which the money was deposited and further transferred, and in three days presented a copy of the complaint on the cyber portal in the court, following which the court issued an order for the release of the money on August 1," SP Singh said.

"I was duped by showing the fear of drugs, 'hawala' and underworld but due to the promptness of the police, I have got my money back," Rathore said. Further investigations into the matter are underway, Singh said. PTI COR BPL BHJ BHJ