A shocking case of online fraud has come to light from Hyderabad, where a 52-year-old software engineer from Gachibowli lost Rs 1.21 crore in a stock trading scam. The victim, who believed he was making genuine investments, was tricked into pouring money between August 13 and September 11, only to later discover that he had fallen prey to fraudsters.

How the Fraudsters Trapped Him

The victim was first lured into a WhatsApp group that appeared to share stock market tips. He actively participated in discussions on stock suggestions, chart patterns, QIB trading during pre-market hours of NSE and NASDAQ, and even IPO investments — all through what was falsely presented as an AEGIS-CAP trading account.

From Small Start to Huge Loss

The victim created an account on a website and began applying for stocks and block trade IPOs. He started with an initial payment of Rs 50,000 on September 13, but over the next few weeks, he kept transferring more money eventually losing a total of Rs 1.21 crore.

False Allotments and Blocked Withdrawals

The fraudsters showed him fake share allotments in bulk to gain his trust and kept urging him to invest more. But when he tried to withdraw some money, they insisted he first pay tax on his supposed profits. Even after complying, every withdrawal request was rejected which finally exposed the operation as a fraud. 

Scam Exposed and Case Registered

The victim later discovered that the trading platform, supposedly run by individuals named Tarak Sharma and Patrik Martin, was a complete scam built to cheat investors. Trusting it to be genuine, he had already poured his entire money through multiple bank accounts. After realising the fraud, he filed a complaint, and the Cyberabad Cyber Crimes police have now registered a case and begun an investigation.