Retired Railways officer's wife duped of Rs 2.59 lakh by cyber fraudsters

Mumbai, Aug 2 (PTI) The wife of a former senior Indian Railways officer, who tried to sell their household furniture on an online marketplace, was duped of more than Rs 2.59 lakh by cyber fraudsters in Mumbai, police said on Friday.

The incident came to light on Thursday evening, when the victim, who stays in Badhwar Park Railway Officer's Colony in South Mumbai, approached the Colaba Police Station with a complaint, an official said.

The 58-year-old woman wanted to sell household furniture as her husband, who served in the Railways on a senior position, had just retired and they were in the process of vacating the government accommodation in the next few days, he said.

The woman posted photos of the furniture on OLX, an online marketplace, on July 22 and received a call from one Anita Gupta, who showed interest in purchasing them. Gupta told the victim she has a shop and will purchase all the furniture for Rs 34,000, the official said.

Gupta then gave the phone to one Bharat Jatav, who told the victim he will send his men to collect and transport the furniture, he said.

To complete money transfer, Gupta and Jatav sent Rs 5 through UPI instant real-time payment system to the victim. Instead of transferring the money promised to buy the furniture, the duo tricked the woman into making four transactions and sending more than Rs 2.59 lakh in different bank accounts from her husband's account, said the official.

On realising she has been cheated by cyber crooks, the woman filed a complaint against the duo. Based on the complaint, a case under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the IT Act has been registered at the Colaba Police Station against unidentified fraudsters, he said. PTI DC RSY