Ahmedabad-based software engineer fell victim to a cryptocurrency scam, resulting in a loss of over Rs one crore, said officials on Monday.
The victim, identified as Kuldeep Patel, encountered the scammer, Aditi, through a matrimonial site, ultimately leading to the financial loss. He approached the police on September 9 and the matter is under investigation.
Sources said Patel's ordeal began in June when he met Aditi on a matrimonial site, who claimed to be engaged in import and export business in the UK. She enticed Patel to invest in 'banocoin,' promising lucrative returns. Trusting her words, Patel initiated contact with a 'customer care representative of Banocoin,' registered on their website, and began investing substantial sums of money, hoping for substantial profits.
Initially, Patel's investments appeared promising, with his crypto account showing a profit of 78 USDT (US dollar tether) after investing the first Rs one lakh. Encouraged by the initial success, he continued to invest, ultimately committing Rs 1.34 crore across 18 transactions between July 20 and August 31. However, on September 3, when Patel attempted to withdraw Rs 2.59 lakh from his account, he received the shocking news that his account had been frozen.
In a desperate attempt to resolve the issue, Patel reached out to the customer care representative who had initially advised him. He was informed that he needed to invest an additional Rs 35 lakh to unfreeze his account. Alarmed and confused, Patel attempted to contact Aditi but received no response, leading him to realize that he had fallen victim to a scam, said the sources.