Pune Woman Loses ₹52 lakh In Fake IPO Investment Scam

A 46-year-old woman from the Nanded area of Pune has fallen victim to a major online investment scam, losing a staggering ₹52.72 lakh to cyber fraudsters who lured her with promises of high returns through a fake IPO trading platform.

According to officials from the Cyber Police Station, a case has been registered under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 2023, Sections 319(2) and 318(4) along with Section 66(D) of the Information Technology Act, which deals with cheating by personation using computer resources.

As per the complaint, between January 30 and April 2, the victim received an online advertisement from an unknown mobile number claiming lucrative returns through share market investments, particularly in Initial Public Offerings (IPOs). The message included a link and instructed her to download a trading application named, Aikya.

According to the police, initially, the cyber fraudster persuaded her to invest a small amount, and then showed nominal profits to build trust. Later, she continued investing larger sums over time. However, the platform was fraudulent, and the accused manipulated the interface to display fake gains. Eventually, the victim realised she had been duped after she was unable to withdraw her funds.

Police have identified the accused as the unknown mobile number holder and link operator involved in the scam. However, no arrests have been made so far, and further investigation is underway to trace the perpetrators and recover the defrauded amount.

Swapnali Shinde, Senior Police Inspector of Cyber Police Station, said, "The case has been registered, and the matter is under investigation. Soon, the accused will be arrested. We urge the citizens to cross-check before investing their money."