Elderly Man Duped Of Rs 3.3 Crores Suspectedly By Ukrainian Woman

In Mumbai, a 75-year-old businessman fell prey to a cyber fraud scheme, resulting in a loss of Rs 3.3 crore to a woman from Ukraine. The victim, the proprietor of a private company, reported the fraudulent activity to the West Region Cyber Crime Police Station in Maharashtra.

Allegedly, the fraudulents reached out to the victim, posing as business associates, and presented an offer to dispatch a box containing cash from their country to India.

According to the reports by OpIndia, the scam revolved around a Ukrainian woman named Esema who enticed the entrepreneur by offering to establish a new company in India. She painted a picture of turmoil in her home country, Ukraine, due to an ongoing war, claiming that her business had been ravaged. Esema successfully persuaded the Mumbai businessman that she possessed funds and harboured intentions of initiating a new business venture in India.

The initial contact occurred through email, where she conveyed her company's interest in purchasing factory equipment. Subsequently, she proposed sending a box containing $9.7 lakh (approximately Rs 8 crore) to aid him in launching a new company in India under her name.

In a subsequent communication, she alleged that the police in Jakarta, Indonesia had seized the box. She insisted that the man settle various fees across multiple online accounts to release the box.

Over eight months, the correspondence continued through emails, during which the elderly man adhered to Esema's instructions and transferred money to 101 different Indian bank accounts.

The total amount sent amounted to Rs 3.3 crore, with the expectation of receiving the promised Rs 8 crore. Unfortunately, the man received nothing in return for his substantial financial transfers.

Persistently, the woman crafted various justifications and insisted on additional financial contributions. These included payments for certificates such as anti-drug and money laundering clearance, transfer certificate fees, and various other charges. In a coercive manner, she threatened legal action against the man if he failed to comply.

Furthermore, he found himself under pressure to furnish additional documents, namely income tax reports, a power of attorney, insurance details, an original fund authorisation certificate, and certificates from the Ministry of Finance. These requests, coupled with the financial demands, were intended to persuade him of the legitimacy of the transactions.

Cyberfraud Becoming Common?

This incident is not isolated, as there have been previous cases where victims filed complaints after engaging with individuals abroad who promised to send parcels or money, only for the victims to end up paying substantial amounts to recover the alleged funds.

A parallel situation emerged when a woman reported a similar case involving her Bumble connection. According to her account, the connection was purportedly apprehended by authorities for possessing excessive sums of money.

However, it was later revealed that both the Bumble connection and the calls from the authorities were fabricated, forming part of a scheme devised by scammers to extort money.

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