Father of a sick girl duped by cyber criminals

Man falls victim to fraudulent hospital number online, loses Rs 2 lakh

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: A 44-year-old resident of Padegaon area, was tricked by cyber criminals when he searched for a hospital number online to seek medical help for his ailing daughter. The incident came to light when a case was filed on Monday.

According to police, Vijay Sonawane's daughter Himanshi, had fallen ill. Desperate to contact a hospital in Osmanpura, he searched for the number online and called on the number. But it went unanswered. Shortly after, he received a call from an unknown individual claiming to be from the hospital. The caller informed Sonawane that it was the hospital number and proceeded to send a link, instructing him to register the patient's name and make an online payment of Rs 10 as a fee. Trusting the authenticity of the call, Sonawane transferred the requested amount.

The caller then asked Sonawane to disclose the One-Time Password (OTP). Subsequently, on the first day, Rs 99,998 was transferred from Sonawane's bank account. Over the course of the next two days, the cyber criminals managed to embezzle an amount of Rs 2,44,996. It was only when Sonawane realized that he had been duped. He then reported the incident to the cyber police. A case has been registered at the Chawani police station, with PI Kailas Deshman investigating the case.