HYDERABAD: A 30-year-old techie from Manikeshwari Nagar lost Rs 1.58 crore after investing in a fake online trading platform. He was later threatened by the fraudsters when he began doubting the platform’s authenticity.
According to his complaint, on May 14, he received a WhatsApp message from a person identifying himself as Uttekar, a ‘trading advisor’. Uttekar persuaded him to invest through a TB Demat account instead of using platforms like Groww or Zerodha and added him to a WhatsApp group.
Initially, the techie was asked to invest a small amount to check returns. Later, he was told he had been allotted an IPO and had to make a large payment towards it. The fraudsters assured him that these payments were legitimate, but the demands for further funds continued.
“When I started questioning their authenticity, they threatened me with false claims of possible tax evasion charges or other legal action, warning that it could cost me my job,” the victim told police. The fraudsters even pretended to make payments on his behalf and demanded repayment with extra commission fees.