TN doctor duped of Rs 76.5 lakh while searching online trading tips on YouTube

The victim transferred money to what seemed to be an online trading platform to purchase stocks and initial public offerings (IPOs) from reputed financial institutions, according to reports from The Hindu. However, it was only when he attempted to withdraw funds that he realized he had been deceived, discovering that he had been tricked from the start.

Sources within the police department stated that the victim saw a YouTube ad regarding online trading guidance. He was prompted to join a WhatsApp group where a number of people were acting as investors. Members often shared images of their investments and earnings in the initial days as the group honed down on the fundamentals of online trading, reports the Daily. Diwakar Singh, the group's administrator, suggested companies for both short-term and long-term investments.

The frauds told the doctor to sign up for a certain website after they gauged his trust in the community; they promised him a 30% return on investment (ROI) in both Indian and American equities. After the victim clicked on a link the criminals sent him, he created an account and started wiring funds to the site. The con artists sent him a laundry list of firms and initial public offerings (IPOs) to back up their claim that his money would be placed in high-return securities.

Almost the entire fund of the doctor was transferred during the first three weeks of October. On October 22 the doctor made a formal request to withdraw Rs 50L, his transaction was not successful. When he looked into the matter, he was told that a Rs 50 lakh fee was required by the “Qualified Institutional Buyers Association” to process withdrawals.

The doctor told The Hindu, “That’s when I sensed something was wrong. I realized that I could not access my funds and that I had been systematically lured into an online trading scam.” Legal action was taken in response to the doctors’ report under the IT Act and Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The authorities in Tamil Nadu are currently trying to track down individuals in North India who may have been involved in the alleged transfer and withdrawal of funds.

“Once the money is transferred, it is siphoned off in less than two hours. In a recent case, ₹1.18 crore transferred to one such fraud account was withdrawn in about 250 transactions across India. The accused were operating from Southeast Asian countries,” the officer said.