Bhubaneswar: Ex-serviceman falls prey to cyber fraud, loses Rs 95 lakh

BHUBANESWAR: In the biggest cyber fraud reported in Odisha, scamsters allegedly duped an ex-serviceman of Rs 95 lakh by luring him with the promise of high returns for an insurance policy he had bought online. The 61-year-old retired defence officer, who lives in Bhubaneswar, lodged a complaint with the cyber cell of the state crime branch in Cuttack on Monday.
The complainant had purchased an insurance policy worth Rs six lakh in January 2011. In August 2015, he received a series of calls from different people, who introduced themselves as functionaries of the Reserve Bank of India, National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), State Bank of India (SBI), Income Tax and the Union ministry of finance. All of them insisted that he pay certain amounts to liquidate the agent bonus on his policy. When he tried to inquire about the agent bonus, which he had never heard of, the fraudsters gave him several explanations which he could not understand.
Crime Branch sources said the fraudsters assured him huge return if he deposited the money. Without proper verification, the ex-serviceman complied with their request and started sending money to some accounts shared by them.
“After each payment, the cyber crooks called him up again and asked him to pay towards some other heads. Shockingly, the victim realised that he had been duped only after losing Rs 95 lakh. From August 2015 till recently, he had paid Rs 95 lakh to the callers,” a crime branch officer said.
The police have registered a case under Sections 419 (cheating by impersonation), 420 (cheating), 465 (forgery), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 471 (using forged documents to be genuine), 120-B (criminal conspiracy) and 34 (act done by several persons with a common intention) of the IPC and other relevant section of the IT Act, 2000.
Insurance officers said there is nothing called agent bonus while liquidating a policy. “Neither banks nor insurance companies nor RBI or any other agencies call customers to deposit money towards any head. Customers should either visit the nearby branch or contact the authorised agents/staff of the insurance companies for clarification,” said Sagar Mohanty, an insurance manager.
Inspired By