Crypto trading scam: Chunabhatti bizman duped of over 18L

Bhopal: A 50-year-old businessman from Chunabhatti was allegedly duped of Rs 18.55 lakh by online fraudsters on the pretext of cryptocurrency trading. Police on Wednesday registered a case against unidentified accused. Police said that the complainant, Lalit Namdev, 50, a resident of Chanakyapuri Colony, works as a property broker and businessman. Police added that he came in contact with a woman through an online app on Jan 5. The complainant said the woman lured him into trading by claiming she earned substantial profits through cryptocurrency investments. She sent him a link, helped him create an account and initially showed small profits of around Rs 15,000 in two transactions. Later, she introduced him to her "mentor," identified as Balveer, who allegedly convinced him to invest larger amounts, promising higher returns. The accused also got him to sign an online contract and demanded 15% commission on daily profits.On Jan 28, the man was asked to invest Rs 12,000 for trading. When he attempted to withdraw profits, he was told that funds could only be withdrawn after seven days with a No Objection Certificate (NOC).Police said the complainant managed to withdraw Rs 31,000 once, but later his withdrawal requests were blocked. When he contacted the accused, he was asked to deposit 15% of the total funds to enable withdrawal.By then, the complainant already transferred around Rs 9 lakh. On Feb 19, he deposited Rs 8.89 lakh via RTGS as 15% of the claimed total fund of Rs 58 lakh. However, when he tried to withdraw the amount again, he was asked to deposit an additional 25%. Realising he was cheated, he approached cops. tnn