Mumbai: Retired Professor Duped of Nearly Rs 2 Crore in Crypto Scam by Woman Befriended on Facebook

A retired professor from a reputed college in Mumbai lost nearly ₹2 crore after falling into the trap of a young woman he befriended on Facebook. The woman, posing as an employee of a multinational company, convinced the professor to invest in cryptocurrency. Trusting her words and guidance, he ended up transferring ₹1.93 crore before realizing he had been cheated. The West Region Cyber Police of Mumbai Police has registered a case of online fraud in this connection.

The 62-year-old complainant had retired from a prestigious college in Mumbai. He received a friend request from a woman named Ayesha on Facebook, which he accepted. The two began chatting on WhatsApp after Ayesha obtained his mobile number. Claiming to be a resident of Gurugram and working for a company called Global Art, Ayesha built a rapport with the professor by speaking sweetly and gaining his trust. She then introduced him to cryptocurrency investment and shared various “tips” to earn profits.

Initially, the professor verified her tips and found them accurate, which increased his confidence in her. Subsequently, under her guidance, he created a Binance account using his Aadhaar card and email ID and began investing in Bitcoin through various bank transactions. However, after a few days, Ayesha abruptly stopped communicating, leaving the professor distressed.

Before he could fully grasp what had happened, another woman named Koyal contacted him, claiming she would help him recover the invested money within 4–5 days. Soon after, a man named Prashant Patil also called and told him he would receive ₹7.5 lakh in the first installment, but he needed to pay ₹42,735 as a processing charge. Over the next several days, the professor continued making payments under various pretexts related to cryptocurrency and Bitcoin investments.

In total, the professor transferred ₹1.93 crore before realizing he had been duped in a well-orchestrated cyber scam.

The West Region Cyber Police has registered a case against unknown cyber fraudsters under Sections 66(C) and 66(D) of the Information Technology Act for identity theft and misuse of computer resources, as well as relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) including 318(4), 319(2), 336(2), 336(3), 338, 340(2), and 61(2).