Mumbai: A 66-year-old retired professional from Mulund managed to recover a significant portion of his money after being duped into investing Rs13 lakh through a fake investment application created by cyber fraudsters. Sensing something suspicious, he used a ruse and told the accused that he wanted to understand the withdrawal process before making a larger investment, which enabled him to retrieve part of the amount.
According to the FIR, the complainant, Premanand Gopalakrishna Bhat, a retired employee of Crompton Greaves Limited, lives with his wife in Nilam Nagar, Mulund (East). On December 13, 2025, he was added to a WhatsApp group named GX-103.5p Capital Matrix, where messages related to stock market investments were regularly shared.
Since Bhat had previously traded in the stock market, he inquired about investment opportunities in the group. A woman identifying herself as Shalini Kulkarni, the alleged group administrator, repeatedly contacted him and explained various investment strategies promising high returns.
Initially suspicious, Bhat declined to invest. However, Kulkarni later added him to another WhatsApp group named GX-124-5p Prosperity Circle and convinced him that investing through an app called 5 PAISA CAPITAL MAX would yield high profits without any additional charges.
To gain his trust, the fraudsters arranged a call from a person posing as the app’s director, Sarat Kumar Mallick. Believing their claims, Bhat downloaded the app through a link sent by the accused.
Kulkarni then shared bank account details in the name of Krishna Karthikeya Enterprises along with a JPEG file falsely claiming that the account was registered with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). Trusting the information, Bhat transferred a total of Rs13 lakh through seven transactions to the provided account.
To understand the withdrawal process, Bhat first withdrew Rs3,000 and later Rs32,000 from the app. On February 12 and 13, he attempted to withdraw Rs1.85 lakh and Rs5 lakh respectively. Kulkarni called him and questioned the large withdrawal request, stating that such withdrawals were not allowed.
Sensing something suspicious, Bhat told the accused that he wanted to understand the withdrawal process before making a larger investment. Convinced by this, the fraudsters allowed him to withdraw funds. By February 19, Bhat managed to withdraw Rs7.35 lakh.
However, when he attempted to withdraw the remaining Rs5.65 lakh, the accused told him that withdrawals would only be allowed after investing at least Rs50 lakh. They subsequently shared details of several bank accounts and asked him to deposit the additional amount.
Realizing that he had been cheated, Bhat refused to deposit any more money. He immediately contacted the national cyber helpline 1930 and registered an online complaint. He also emailed a complaint to the Navghar police station.
Based on his complaint, police have registered a case under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) Act, and the Information Technology Act, against the woman posing as Shalini Kulkarni, the person claiming to be director Sarat Kumar Mallick, and their associates. Further investigation is underway.
