Pune Women Lose ₹17 Lakh in Separate Cyber Fraud Cases

Cybercriminals in Pune are increasingly targeting citizens, especially women, through fake investment schemes, social media traps, and impersonation of police or government officials. In three separate incidents reported this month, women collectively lost around ₹17 lakh to such online scams.

In the first case, a woman from Hadapsar was cheated of ₹8.77 lakh in a fraudulent stock trading scheme. The scammers lured her with promises of high returns and guided her through several online transactions over a few weeks. When she received no profits and the fraudsters stopped responding, she realized she had been duped.

In another incident, a woman from Raviwar Peth lost ₹2.77 lakh after befriending a man on social media who claimed to be living abroad. He told her he was sending her expensive gifts. Soon after, someone posing as a customs officer called her, saying the parcel had been seized at the airport and that she needed to pay fees to release it. Believing the story, she transferred the money but later discovered it was a scam.

The third case involved a Yerawada-based woman who was conned out of ₹6.15 lakh. Fraudsters called her, pretending to be police officials, and accused her of being involved in a drug smuggling case. They claimed a parcel in her name contained cocaine and threatened to arrest her unless she paid to “settle” the matter. Fearing legal trouble, she transferred the money before realizing she had been tricked. A complaint has been registered at the Yerawada Police Station.

According to Pune Police, cybercriminals are increasingly impersonating officers from agencies like the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Enforcement Directorate (ED), and Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) to extort money from innocent citizens.

Officials have urged people to stay alert, avoid sharing personal or banking details with unknown callers, and immediately report any suspicious activity to the Cybercrime Helpline 1930 or visit cybercrime.gov.in.