One held for duping businessman of Rs 4 crore in Nagpur

The Nagpur Police in Maharashtra have arrested a man and booked another for allegedly duping a businessman of more than Rs 4 crore in the trading of thermo-mechanically treated (TMT) iron bars, officials said on Thursday, reported the PTI.

According to the police, the alleged fraud took place between May and December 2024 after which a case was registered at the Kalamna police station in Nagpur, an official said.

As per the complaint filed by Syed Farhan Syed Firoze (30), a trader and a resident of Yavatmal, he came in contact with the two accused, identified as Murtuja Yusuf Shakir (42) and Shirin Shakir (69) who posed as traders and gained the complainant`s trust by offering TMT iron bars lower than the market price, according to the PTI.

“They initially supplied material at discounted rates to the victim. Over a period of eight months, the accused received a total of Rs 4.31 crore from the complainant for the supply of iron bars. However, instead of delivering the goods, the accused sent fabricated invoices and fake ledgers to show the dispatch of material that was never delivered,” he said, the news agency reported.

After realising that he has been duped, the complainant approached the police and lodged a complaint.

Based on the investigation, a case was registered under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

Octogenarian cheated of Rs 3 lakh by person posing as US-based kin

An 81-year-old woman was cheated of Rs 3 lakh by a person posing as her US-based relative, a Mumbai Police official said on Thursday, reported the PTI.

The woman stays with her 60-year-old daughter-in-law, who is the complainant in the case, and her 39-year-old granddaughter, the police official said.

The incident took place on April 4, a family member got a message from a “US based relative” from a number, which she saved believing it was the latter`s new number, the official said.

“The accused first sought Rs 1 lakh for some urgent matter, which was transferred through NEFT. The accused then sought Rs 2 lakh, which was transferred by the 81-year-old woman on April 15. However, when the accused sought bigger amounts in the range of Rs 5-7 lakh, the woman and her kin found it suspicious,” he said, according to the PTI.

“They could not get any response on this number. When they called the US-based relative on an old number, she told them she had not received any money, which made them realise they had been cheated,” the official added.

The victim reached out to the Chunabhatti Police Station in the eastern suburbs of the city and filed a case in the matter.

A case has been registered against unidentified person and further probe is underway, the official said.

(with PTI inputs)