Contractor lured into high stock market return, loses 38 lakh

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: A private contractor from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar was duped of nearly Rs38 lakh in a cyber fraud.The victim (43), a resident of the Mayur Park area, was lured by promises of high stock market returns from a firm claiming to be based in Singapore, police said."The victim first came into contact with the fraudsters in Jan 2025. Acting as a gang, the fraudsters portrayed themselves as a finance management firm that offers attractive returns on investment in the share market," police said. The victim transferred money on multiple occasions to the firm between Jan 14 last year and Jan 13 this year. "Initially, the fraudsters offered a good return to the victim to gain his confidence. It prompted the victim to invest more money," police said.The victim later stopped receiving any communication from the finance management firm and realised that he was cheated.Acting on the victim's complaint, the Harsul police registered an offence under the enabling provisions of the Information Technology Act, 2000, and further probe is on.