Hyderabad woman loses Rs. 2.82 lakhs in matrimonial fraud on Shaadi.com
Hyderabad: A 27-year-old female private employee from Hyderabad fell victim to a scam while seeking a match on Shaadi.com. The victim, whose identity has been withheld, received a message from a fraudster posing as an overseas resident planning to settle in India.
The fraudster, cunningly claiming to be in the UK, contacted the victim under the pretense of soon arriving in India. Subsequently, he informed her of being detained at Delhi IGI airport by customs officials, alleging possession of excess funds. The fraudster, with his deceptive tactics, persuaded the victim to transfer funds for a purported Money Laundering/Drug Clearance Certificate to secure his release.
As the day progressed, the fraudster persistently requested additional payments, citing the need for an Anti-Terrorist Department clearance certificate and exchange charges, all of which the victim unsuspectingly transferred. The victim lost a staggering sum of Rs. 2,82,200 to the fraudster.
Realizing the deceit only after demanding proof of the certificates for which she had paid, the victim discovered through a Google search that the documents provided were fraudulent. By then, it was too late to recover the funds.
In response to this incident, authorities caution individuals using matrimonial websites to verify profiles thoroughly, cross-check details on social media platforms, and refrain from sharing personal information or making financial transactions. Meeting prospective partners and family members before committing further is strongly advised to mitigate such risks.
Victims of online fraud are encouraged to report promptly to the Cyber Crime Helpline at 1930 or visit cybercrime.gov.in for assistance.
In a similar incident, it was learned that the NoBroker website defrauded a man by withholding his Rs.45,000 token payment, which was meant for purchasing a property.
Karthik, an IT professional, has claimed that NoBroker had misled him in a fraudulent property transaction, resulting in a loss of Rs. 45,000.
While speaking to Hyderabad Mail, Karthik said he found a property listed on the NoBroker website and expressed interest. A relationship manager from NoBroker assured him of facilitating the transaction, claiming to represent the property owner, who was purportedly abroad.
Karthik detailed his experience, stating that a field relationship manager arranged a hurried inspection of the flat, allowing only ten minutes for evaluation despite prolonged waiting times. Subsequently, the NoBroker representative pressured him to make a token payment of Rs. 45,000 to visit the property and to delist the property from others’ viewing. Karthik insisted on the official website for the transaction and paid through NoBroker.
“After paying the token amount,” Karthik said, “I attempted to verify the property’s legitimacy by requesting documentation from the supposed owner, who demanded an additional advance of Rs. 35 lakhs for processing documents. Suspicious of the transaction’s authenticity, I declined and sought a refund of my token amount.”
Upon requesting the refund, Karthik alleged that the NoBroker relationship manager became unresponsive despite repeated attempts to contact them via email. His efforts to clarify the situation and retrieve his funds have thus far been unsuccessful.
As of now, Karthik has not filed a case against NoBroker at the police station.
