The Pune Cyber Police have apprehended an individual named Shahrukh Khan for allegedly extorting Rs 70,000 from a journalist employed at a private news channel by posing as Pune Collector Rajesh Deshmukh on Facebook, ABP Majha reported.
The accused employed a fraudulent Facebook account under the guise of District Collector Rajesh Deshmukh Pune and lured the victim under the pretence of selling furniture.
He created fake profiles of several IPS and IAS officers in state
Further investigations have unveiled that the suspect had fabricated numerous fake profiles of IPS and IAS officers from the state on Facebook, resulting in the extortion of substantial sums of money. Shahrukh Khan was taken into custody by the cyber police in Bahadurpur village, located in the Alwar Nagar village of Rajasthan.
Here's how he duped the journo
In this scam, the accused initially created a fake Facebook account in the name of Pune Collector Dr. Rajesh Deshmukh. Using this fake account, they messaged the victim, claiming that a friend who works in CRPF was offering furniture at a discounted rate. The victim, believing the impersonator, received a phone call from someone claiming to be the collector's friend, Santosh Kumar. This person persuaded the victim to transfer 70 thousand rupees for the furniture purchase. However, the promised furniture was never delivered, leading the victim to report the fraud to Pune Cyber Police on July 22.
