Trading fraud: Bengaluru-based businessman clicks on Facebook advertisement, loses Rs 89 lakh | Bengaluru News
Bengaluru: A 50-year-old businessman from Horamavu has reportedly lost Rs 89 lakh in an online trading scam over two months. The victim, Sunil (name changed), lodged a complaint with the East CEN crime police after realising he had fallen prey to fraudsters operating through a fake trading platform.According to his complaint, Sunil came across an advertisement on Facebook two months ago, promoting high returns on stock market investments through an online platform named ‘FXROAD @FXRoad_Account_Mngr_bot’. Interested by the promise of quick profits, he clicked on a free registration link and submitted his basic details. Soon after, he received a call from a woman who explained the process and persuaded him to invest $200 (around Rs 17,000).The next day, another person contacted him, urging further investment by assuring daily profits. They showed a small credit of $50 on the portal and claimed that profits would be automatically added. Trusting the process, Sunil continued to invest more money as he was regularly shown fictitious profits on the trading dashboard.However, when he attempted to withdraw his earnings, which were shown as $17,000, the scammers alleged he had caused a $19,000 loss and was under a complete account deficit. They continued to manipulate him, assuring large profits and pressuring him into investing more, eventually convincing him to deposit up to $25,000 with promises of a $9,000 profit in a day.Despite mounting doubts, Sunil invested further, including a lump sum of $50,000 after three weeks, hoping to recover his earlier losses. The scammers claimed market fluctuations had caused a loss and delayed withdrawals. They later demanded an additional $300,000 (Rs 2.6 crore), which he refused.When Sunil insisted on retrieving his money, the fraudsters began threatening legal action. Realising he had been conned, he contacted the cyber helpline and filed a complaint with the police.The East CEN crime police are investigating the matter.
