Is Cyber Crime Rising in Sikkim? After Doctor, Now a Woman Duped of Rs 1 lakh by Fake Customs Officer

On July 17, a doctor in Gangtok fell victim to a fraudulent stock investment scheme, losing over Rs 5 lakh

Is cyber crime rising in Sikkim? Concerns are mounting over a possible rise in cybercrime in the Himalayan state following back-to-back incidents within a week.

After a doctor in Gangtok recently fell victim to a fraudulent stock investment scheme, losing over Rs 5 lakh, another incident has come to the fore wherein, a woman was duped of Rs 1 lakh by a scammer posing as a customs officer.

Although the incident happened on June 14, it came to light after the 54-year-old woman from Tathangchen, Gangtok filed a complaint regarding the same at a Sadar Police Station on July 22 seeking legal action against the unknown perpetrators.

In her complaint, the woman said that on June 14, she got a call from an unknown number. The caller identified himself as a customs official from Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport and told her that a shipment bearing her name was scheduled to be sent to Malaysia. The shipment included counterfeit passports, ATM cards, and 140 grams of Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (Drugs). The caller threatened to file a criminal complaint at the New Delhi Police Station against her if she did not cooperate.

She even received arrest warrants, and threats to seize her property and was then contacted via WhatsApp asking to transfer Rs 1 lakh to a specified bank account for “Public Office Fund Legalization”. In fear, she transferred Rs 1 lakh through Google Pay to a WhatsApp number linked to UPI Transaction ID 416623048690 and an account under the name Manju Kuwar, she stated in her complaint.

A case has been registered into the incident and an investigation is underway.

On July, 17, the doctor, a resident of Daragoan, Tadong reported that he was added to a WhatsApp group named “Sharekhan Club 369” without his consent. The group’s administrators, pretending to be representatives of the reputed stockbroking firm Sharekhan, persuaded him to invest in stocks through the Pro Sharekhan app and a related website. In the process, he lost Rs 5.07 lakh to a group of unknown scammers.

Investigation into this case is also underway.

COMMENTS