Beware of Online fraud! Facebook ‘friend’ dupes woman of Rs 57 lakh. Here’s how

Later, when the old woman tried to establish contact with the duo, they were not reachable, following which she approached the police and filed a complaint.

A 69-year-old woman from Vasai in Palghar district of Maharashtra was allegedly duped of Rs 57.36 lakh by two online fraudsters, including a man who claimed to be a pilot from the UK, police said on Thursday. The offence was registered at Vasai Police Station against the unidentified persons on Wednesday evening, an official said.

“In her complaint, the elderly woman said that a man, who identified himself as Leo Jovha befriended her on Facebook last month. He said he was a resident of Scotland and worked as a pilot with a British airline,” Palghar police spokesperson Sachin Navadkar said. In the course of time, the man told the woman that he wanted to purchase two acres of land in an industrial area in her name and said he would send money for the purpose, the official added.

“Soon, the victim received a call from a woman, who identified herself as Joshila, who told her to that a courier has landed at the airport, but held up for clearance. The caller said that as the amount is huge, the victim has to pay the government taxes to get the money,” the official said. From time to time, the caller kept calling the elderly woman and asked her to deposit money into different bank accounts. The total amount she was asked to pay was Rs 57.36 lakh, he said.

Later, when the old woman tried to establish contact with the duo, they were not reachable, following which she approached the police and filed a complaint. According to Navadkar, a case under IPC sections 420 (cheating), 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 34 (common intention) was registered, but no arrest has been made in this connection.