NEW DELHI: Three men—Sandeep Sain (30) and Parikshit (23) of Haryana and Sachin Jhakkar (25), of Rajasthan—have been arrested for the crime for allegedly duping a government employee serving with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) of more than Rs 15 lakh in an online investment scam.
This comes after a complaint was filed in this regard on July 14 last year. According to the complainant, he was contacted through WhatsApp by some persons claiming to represent a work-from-home company engaged in property rental ratings and leasing tasks. He was added to a Telegram group, provided training and directed to register on multiple websites, a senior police officer said.
Initially, he received small profits after completing tasks assigned to him and making deposits. This gave a boost to his confidence, encouraging him to invest larger amounts by introducing schemes such as “charter leases,” “bonus tasks” and other lucrative investment opportunities.
The complainant transferred money on multiple occasions. When he attempted to withdraw the amount reflected in his account, the fraudsters demanded an additional payment equivalent to 50% of the balance displayed as a withdrawal penalty. By that time, the complainant had already transferred Rs 15.74, lakh, DCP (central) Rohit Rajbir Singh said.
No withdrawal was permitted and no money was returned, after which he realised that he had fallen victim to an organised cyber fraud. Based on a complaint by him, a case was registered and probe taken up.
Police carried out technical surveillance, analysis of digital evidence, etc, to identify the accused, eventually nabbing Sandeep on June 7 from Karnal and Sachin Jhakkar & Parikshit on Monday.
How the online fraud unfolded over time
According to the complainant, he was contacted through WhatsApp by some persons claiming to represent a work-from-home company engaged in property rental ratings and leasing tasks. He was added to a Telegram group, provided training and directed to register on multiple websites, a senior police officer said.