New Delhi: In one of Delhi’s biggest cyber fraud cases, former Rajya Sabha MP Naresh Gujral was duped of Rs 7.80 crore.
The 78-year-old Naresh, son of late Inder Kumar Gujral, the 12th Prime Minister of India, fell victim to a cunning impersonation scam that resulted in the loss of a huge amount of money earlier this month.
The fraudsters used a fake WhatsApp account with the profile picture of Naresh Gujral himself to target his company via its financial team.
A deceptive message was sent to one of Naresh’s trusted emp
loyees, instructing him to transfer money into a specified bank account via RTGS (Real Time Gross Settlement).
Little did the employee — who had been entrusted with financial access by the employer — realise that the message was not actually from his boss. As instructed by the scamster, he carried out four RTGS transactions, collectively amounting to Rs 7.80 crore, between June 12 and June 16.
Because of swift action by law enforcement agencies, more than 60% of the cheated money has been frozen, and couldn’t be withdrawn.
“Just after the complaint, the cyber agency in Delhi swung into action and immediately blocked the amount,” Naresh told News18.
As is the protocol related to big amounts of transfer, the bank had called before clearing the amount. “The bank called my CFO but he thought I had given the instructions so he asked the bank to clear and complete the transactions,” Naresh said.
A case has been registered at the intelligence fusion and strategic operations (IFSO) unit of Delhi Police.
An investigation has been launched into the multi-crore cyber fraud after the crime was reported to the national cybercrime reporting portal (NCRP).