Two Hyderabad Residents Duped of Rs 1.58 Crore in Stock Market Scams

Cyber fraudsters allegedly cheated two residents from Saidabad and Sultan Shahi in Hyderabad of more than Rs 1.58 crore in separate fake stock market trading and investment scams, police said.

In the first case, a woman residing in Saidabad encountered an advertisement on Facebook regarding trading and investments in May. The advertisement featured the name of Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, which led the woman to believe the opportunity was legitimate. After clicking the provided link, unidentified individuals contacted her, collected her identity documents, and added her to a group on the Telegram messaging application.

The fraudsters initially displayed profits on smaller investment amounts, which encouraged the victim to transfer larger sums. In total, she deposited Rs 71.84 lakh across multiple instalments. Her trading account interface later falsely indicated that she had generated profits amounting to Rs 9.85 crore. However, when she attempted to withdraw her funds, the scammers demanded additional payments before allowing any withdrawal. Realising that she had been defrauded, she approached the cybercrime police to file a complaint.

In a separate incident, a youth named Waseem from Sultan Shahi came across an advertisement on Telegram that promised high returns on stock market investments. After he reached out to the contact number provided in the post, he was put in touch with an individual who identified himself as Aravind, who assured him of lucrative returns.

Waseem proceeded to invest Rs 86.50 lakh through multiple transactions. When he sought to withdraw his capital and earnings, the fraudsters pressured him to deposit more money. Suspecting fraudulent activity, he stopped payments and lodged a complaint with the authorities.

The Hyderabad Cybercrime police have registered complaints and are investigating both cases to identify and trace the individuals operating the fraudulent trading networks.