The cybercrime wing of the state police has arrested four men, including two with ties to a Cambodian handler, for defrauding a mill owner in Theni of Rs88.6 lakh in a cryptocurrency scam. The fraudsters initially contacted the victim through a fake matrimonial profile.
Over the past 15 months, Tamil Nadu has reported 379 complaints on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal related to cyber frauds carried out through matrimonial websites. The police have issued a cautionary warning to the public to be wary of such scams.
The recent case highlights a growing modus operandi where criminals create fake profiles on matrimonial platforms, posing as prospective brides and grooms. After gaining the victim’s trust, they introduce high-return investment opportunities, including cryptocurrency, stocks, forex, and real estate, which are actually fraudulent.
In this instance, the victim had registered on the matrimonial app Sangam, where he was matched with a profile named ‘Shree Harini.’ After building a relationship with the victim, the suspect convinced him that ‘she’ had earned a substantial amount through cryptocurrency trading. The victim was manipulated into investing Rs88.6 lakh through 25 separate transactions.
Following the victim’s complaint, the Theni police registered an FIR and traced the fraudulent accounts. Investigations revealed that these accounts were registered under two women, who were daily wage laborers paid Rs2,000 each by one of the accused, C. Nandagopal, 30, from Erode, to open bank accounts for the scam.
Nandagopal then handed these accounts over to R. Yuvarajan, 33, from Erode, and S. Padmanaban, 32, from Coimbatore, who were in contact with a Cambodian handler via Telegram. Another suspect, S. Siva, 30, from Erode, was arrested for his role in the scam. During the investigation, police seized Rs3.9 lakh in cash, six mobile phones, 29 debit cards, 18 cheque books, 12 bank passbooks, and 46 SIM cards.
The police are continuing their investigation into this international scam and have urged the public to be cautious when engaging with people through matrimonial platforms, particularly when asked to invest money.
