87-year-old doctor falls victim to Rs 16 lakh cyber fraud

Mumbai: In a recent cyber fraud case, an 87-year-old retired doctor from Mumbai was defrauded of a staggering Rs 16.14 lakh while searching for pest control services online. The elderly woman had intended to arrange pest control for her housing society, but mistakenly reached out to criminals posing as legitimate BMC representatives.

The fraudsters initially introduced themselves as legitimate authorities from the BMC and informed her of a nominal Rs 50 registration fee for the service.

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According to TOI, the elderly victim, residing in Khar, was deceived while searching for ‘BMC H West Ward (Khar)' pest control services on Dec 20, 2024, seeking arrangements for her housing society's pest control. "She inadvertently contacted fraudsters instead of genuine BMC officials. Upon answering, a female fraudster informed her about a Rs 50 registration requirement. We have sought the bank to freeze the accounts to which the money got credited," stated a cyber police officer.

Although aware that BMC pest control services were complimentary, the fraudster claimed new regulations necessitated online registration and payment, asserting that BMC officials would not visit without completed registration.

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In an attempt to prevent further losses, the elderly victim instructed her bank to halt online transactions from three of her bank accounts. However, she overlooked one account, which ultimately became the source of a significant loss. On February 1, 2025, while reviewing her accounts, the woman discovered unauthorized withdrawals totaling Rs 13.35 lakh from the fourth account.

As soon as she realized the gravity of the situation, she reported the fraud to the authorities. The West Cyber Region Police promptly registered a case against the unknown perpetrators on April 3, 2025.