Doctor In Odisha’s Mayurbhanj Duped Of Rs 45,000 By Social Media ‘Friend’

Bhubaneswar: A woman doctor at the state-run Pandit Raghunath Murmu (PRM) Medical College and Hospital in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district was duped of Rs 45,000 in a case of cyber fraud. She was cheated of the money by a person she had befriended on Instagram.

The 31-year-old doctor has lodged a complaint with the police in Baripada.

She alleged that she got a friend request on Instagram from a person who identified himself as “Vasudev Gopal, an obstetrician and gynaecologist working in the UK”.

Later, she shared her WhatsApp number and postal address with the accused, who wanted to “send her a gift from Scotland”.

According to her complaint, a woman called on her number one day and identified herself as a Customs officer. She asked the doctor to pay Rs 45,000 as clearance charges for the parcel that the woman claimed had “a gift and $30,000”. The woman also threatened to lodge a money laundering case against her if she didn’t pay up.