Coimbatore: College student falls prey to online scam, loses Rs 7.8 lakh

COIMBATORE: A 22-year-old college student lost 7.84 lakh after he fell prey to a scam on Locanto, a user-to-user classifieds platform.
The parents of the student, residents of Ashok Street at Udyampalayam, had deposited 7.84 lakh in a bank for his use, the cybercrime police said. “He was looking to date someone on Locanto on Saturday around 3.30pm and registered using his mobile number.
A person, who introduced himself as Kumar, contacted him over phone and promised to arrange escort service. The student was told to visit a hotel in Coimbatore city. He visited the hotel and transferred 2,500 to Kumar online. But Kumar demanded more money to get details of a woman staying in the hotel. He later threatened to leak their conversation and forced him to transfer 7.84 lakh,” a police officer said.
The youth lodged a complaint with the cybercrime police on Wednesday. Police have registered a case against ‘Kumar’ under Section 420 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 66(D) of the Information Technology Act, 2000.