Three victims in Bengaluru including techie lose ₹9.54 crore in online trading scam: Report

In Bengaluru, three individuals have fallen victim to online stock trading scams, collectively losing a staggering amount of ₹9.54 crore in just one week. The victims include two businessmen, Ramit Goel, aged 50, and Raman Kumar, aged 51, as well as Ramila S, a 45-year-old engineer at a private firm (names changed), the Deccan Herald reported.

The scams share a similar pattern, luring victims with promises of high returns and early access to Initial Public Offerings (IPOs). The victims were initially added to WhatsApp groups called 'JJ77 Investing in India' and 'G3364 MAIN PULL UP LAYOUT EXCHANGE GROUP,' where they received stock market investment tips from the unknown culprits, the report stated.

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Following the advice given in these groups, the three were encouraged to download trading apps. Goel downloaded the ECAUSE-WAY app, while Ramila installed the UNION APP via links provided by the scammers. In Ramila's case, she was misled into filling out a Google form for an Advanced Trading Account with 'Julius Baer,' which is actually a legitimate Swiss private banking corporation, the publication noted.

The victims were misled into believing they were making substantial profits as the apps showed impressive trading gains. Between September 8 and October 23, Goel transferred ₹6.56 crore across 14 different bank accounts linked to the suspects. Kumar sent ₹1.38 crore to 10 accounts between September 24 and October 23, while Ramila wired ₹1.61 crore to six accounts from August 12 to October 18, the report detailed.

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Initially, Ramila received ₹1.10 lakh as a supposed profit, which the police said was a tactic to keep her engaged in the scam. The others, however, saw no returns on their investments.

Following Goel's complaint, the Central CEN crime police registered a case on October 24. The Whitefield CEN crime and Cyber Crime police also took action based on Kumar and Ramila's reports on October 22 and 24, respectively. Investigations are ongoing as authorities work to uncover the full extent of these scams, the report further stated.