A Juhu-based octogenarian homemaker was recently duped to the tune of ₹4.7 lakh by an imposter on the pretext of assisting her to send a parcel by courier.
The fraudster first accessed her banking details by asking her to wire ₹10, only to be cheated. A case has been registered at the Juhu police station.
According to the police, when the complainant was looking up a 'courier service' on a local search engine, she fell prey to the Google listing fraud and contacted a fraudster, who posed as the courier service company.
The incident occurred on April 6, when the octogenarian was unaware that cybercriminals often upload fake customer care numbers online to cheat gullible internet users.
The fraudster kept the victim busy with idle talk and tricked her into disclosing her bank details. The unidentified accused told the woman that in a bid to send the parcel, she would have to pay ₹10 as a registration fee, after which a man would visit her to pick up the parcel, said a senior police official.
The accused then told the woman he would send a link by text message, which sought her UPI details and the woman obliged, only to get siphoned off ₹4.7 lakh from her bank account in a series of transactions.
Realising that she had been duped, the elderly woman approached the Juhu Police and lodged a complaint. Acting on the complaint, a case of cheating and impersonation was registered against the unidentified accused under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and Information Technology Act.
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