Facebook ‘Friend’ Dupes 61-Year-Old Woman Of Rs 9.7 Lakh In Odisha’s Cuttack

Cuttack: A woman of Tulasipur Matha Sahi in Odisha’s Cuttack was allegedly duped of around Rs 9.7 lakh by a fraudster, whom she befriended on Facebook.

According to 61-year-old complainant, she had accepted a friend request sent by one Satya Ranjan Samal of Mahanadi Vihar on Facebook. He had identified himself as a doctor working in a private hospital in Bhubaneswar.

Soon a bond developed between them and Samal later shared his dream of setting up a hospital, which she agreed to fund and gave him Rs 9.7 lakh in eight instalments through cash and in his bank accounts from 2019 to 2020. As Samal reneged, she asked him to return the money but he kept avoiding her.

“We have registered a case of cheating on the basis of the FRI and launched an investigation,” said Bidanasi IIC, PK Naik.