An Andheri-based sexagenarian lost Rs 3.79 lakh in a cyber fraud when she was persuaded into buying life insurance policies of reputed companies. First contacted last year, the accused shared various insurance policy details, and then talked the 63-year-old into buying the policies. When the complainant asked for the policy papers, the cyber crook gave her vague answers and later demand more money. The scam came to light when the senior citizen inquired with the insurance companies about the policies, only to realise that she was duped. A case of cheating and impersonation was recorded at Andheri police station under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and IT Act.
According to the 63-year-old complainant, a man who identified himself as Amit Shrivastav, an employee of Lokpal branch in Delhi, called her in November last year and claimed that she was overcharged by her agent for an insurance policy. Shrivastav then offered her an insurance policy of another company and persuaded her to buy it for Rs 1.44 lakh in May this year. A few days later, two more men, who contacted the complainant via Shrivastav's reference, also sold her a policy. The complainant lost a total of Rs 3.79 lakh.
The complainant, whose son stays overseas and both her daughters are married, kept asking for the policy papers as soon as she made the payment, but was being asked to wait for the processing to finish. Recently, when the complainant asked again, she was given a vague answer and was informed that Rs 50,000 was pending for her to pay, which is why the policy papers are stuck.
Alerted by the constant demands and no sign of any documentation, the senior citizen then inquired with the company, only to realize the men she had been in contact with were never associated with the company. Realizing that she was duped, the 63-year-old homemaker approached the Andheri police and lodged a complaint, acting on which a First Information Report (FIR) was lodged.
While the accused have been booked under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and Information Technology Act for cheating and impersonation, police are investigating the matter and no arrests have been made yet. Police have also contacted the bank to seek details of the recipient's account to ascertain the real identities of the accused.
(To receive our E-paper on WhatsApp daily, please click here. To receive it on Telegram, please click here. We permit sharing of the paper's PDF on WhatsApp and other social media platforms.)
