Cybercrime Wave Hits Chandigarh Region
Residents of Chandigarh and surrounding areas are facing an unprecedented surge in cyber fraud cases, with victims losing nearly Rs 1.9 crore in multiple sophisticated scams reported over recent weeks. The alarming trend has seen cybercriminals exploiting social media platforms and digital channels to target unsuspecting individuals through various deceptive schemes.
Major Cases Expose Sophisticated Scam Networks
The most substantial financial loss occurred in Sector-29, where a woman was defrauded of Rs 1.36 crore after responding to an Instagram advertisement. The ad promised lucrative contracts for digitizing library books through global projects involving scanning old books and converting them into digital archives.
According to police reports, the victim contacted the number provided in the advertisement and initially spoke with a woman identifying herself as the company's marketing head. Subsequently, a man posing as the director assured her of advance payments following an audit but demanded a 40% refundable security deposit.
Trusting their professional approach, the victim transferred Rs 54.75 lakh on October 17 followed by Rs 82.12 lakh on October 31 to a bank account provided by the fraudsters. After receiving the payments, the accused completely vanished - no agreement was ever signed, and all communication channels went dead. Subsequent online investigations revealed that the same company had defrauded multiple other victims using identical methods.
Multiple Fraud Patterns Emerge
In a separate incident from Daria, chemist Inderjit Singh lost Rs 22.85 lakh to two individuals posing as share brokers. The accused, identified as Rohit Patel and Kewal Choudhary, contacted him between July and August, promising substantial profits through National Stock Exchange investments.
The scammers employed a classic trust-building strategy by having the victim initially invest Rs 50,000 and returning Rs 27,500 as fake profits. Encouraged by this apparent success, Singh transferred additional funds, believing he had earned Rs 1.98 lakh in profits. Eventually, after depositing a total of Rs 22.85 lakh, he was informed that his account had suffered losses of Rs 45 lakh. When he refused to pay more money, he filed an official complaint with local authorities.
Elderly residents have also become prime targets, as demonstrated by the case of a 78-year-old retired Food and Supplies Department inspector from Pinjore. He lost Rs 4.03 lakh after clicking a fraudulent Facebook link claiming to update PNB Life Certificates online. The victim downloaded a malicious application and shared sensitive banking details with callers who claimed to be legitimate service providers. Soon after, unauthorized RTGS transfers completely drained his bank account.
Law Enforcement Response and Arrests
Cyber police have registered multiple cases under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and are actively pursuing investigations. In a significant breakthrough, authorities arrested two men from Lucknow - Mohammad Faizan Khan (22) and Mohammad Abuzar (19) - for duping a Chandigarh resident of Rs 8.94 lakh through fake work-from-home offers promoted on Instagram.
Both accused confessed to facilitating the fraud in exchange for commissions, though their primary handler remains at large. Police are currently tracking money trails and digital footprints across all reported cases while warning residents to exercise extreme caution when dealing with unsolicited online offers that promise quick financial gains.
The pattern emerging from these cases reveals that cybercriminals are increasingly using professional-looking social media advertisements and personalized communication to build trust before exploiting victims financially. Authorities emphasize the importance of verifying company credentials, avoiding upfront security deposits, and never sharing sensitive banking information with unverified parties.
