Punjab: Duped of Rs 8 crore in cyber fraud, ex-IPS officer Amar Chahal shoots self in Patiala

Patiala, Dec 22 (PTI) Former IPS officer Amar Singh Chahal allegedly shot himself with the rifle of his security guard here on Monday and in a purported note, he claimed that he had been duped of Rs 8.10 crore by cyber thugs who posed as wealth management advisors.

Chahal, the former Punjab Inspector General of Police, was shifted to the hospital in a critical condition, Patiala Senior Superintendent of Police Varun Sharma said.

Chalal was one of the accused in the 2015 police firing cases related to anti-sacrilege protests in Faridkot.

According to police, a note has been recovered from the scene, which shows that he was a victim of some financial fraud.

In his 12-page note addressed to Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav, Chahal alleged that fraudsters operated through WhatsApp and Telegram groups under the name 'F-777 DBS Wealth Equity Research Group', falsely claiming links with the DBS Bank and its CEO.

"With great sorrow, pain and despair, I have to bring to your kind notice that I have been cheated by these cyber thugs posing as wealth equity advisors to the tune of Rs 8.10 crore," said the note.

"I regret that I did not use due caution while parting with my money," he further wrote.

The group lured investors by promising unusually high returns through stock trading, IPO allotments, OTC trades and so-called "quantitative funds", as per the note.

They were claiming to be representing DBS Group, which is authorised by GoI and SEBI (as per them) to educate and help retail investors earn good money, it stated.

According to the note, fake dashboards were created to show inflated profits, gradually building confidence among investors and prompting them to deposit large sums.

Chahal claimed he was repeatedly pressured to reinvest profits and later asked to pay hefty "service fees," "taxes," and additional charges to withdraw his money, amounting to several crores.

The former police officer stated that despite making all payments through bank transfers, withdrawals were never processed.

He alleged that the scam was highly organised, involving multiple bank accounts and individuals, and urged authorities to constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT) or hand over the case to a specialised central agency to trace the money trail.

"Since this is a very sophisticated scamsters group, a dedicated SIT can only unearth the network and bring people to book. If your good self may find it proper, it could even be entrusted to CBI or a specialised cell of Punjab police," he said in his note.

Expressing deep distress, financial ruin, and emotional trauma, Chahal wrote that he felt devastated and ashamed, apologising to his family and colleagues.

"I am extremely sorry, sir, that apart from destroying my own family, I have brought the Punjab Police into question, whose own officer could not take care of the caution to be exercised", he wrote.

"Sir, I would be very grateful that if any culprits are caught and recoveries affected, and some could be passed on to my family so that they are able to pay the persons from whom I borrowed money," he wrote.

He maintained that, except for the alleged scammers, no one else was responsible for his decision.

"Sir, while advising general people to be aware of the scamsters, I have myself fallen victim to their sophisticated method," he wrote.

He also wrote in the note that he used the rifle of his gunman as he did not have any weapon.

Police said they are probing the firing incident and the alleged fraud, examining the note, bank transactions, and digital evidence. PTI COR CHS HIG HIG