A 51-year-old man from Gandhidham, Gujarat, originally from Pune, has fallen victim to a cryptocurrency scam, losing ₹56.47 lakh. The incident was reported to the Kutch East Cyber Crime police station, leading to an FIR under sections 316(2) (criminal breach of trust) and 318 (cheating) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
The scam began on June 23, when the victim, Kishor Nargundkar, was contacted via Telegram by a woman named Deepa, who introduced him to a group called “Conforge Finance.” This group purportedly offered opportunities to earn money through cryptocurrency trading.
Deepa encouraged Nargundkar to join, providing him with a login ID and directing him to a trading application that displayed a balance, credit score, and options to buy and sell cryptocurrencies.
Initially, Nargundkar was asked to complete tasks related to marketing and cryptocurrency trading. Believing he was earning daily profits, he was persuaded to invest in cryptocurrencies, stocks, and the USDT stablecoin.
He was added to a ‘VIP group’ and started with a small investment of ₹1,000, receiving ₹1,400 in return. Encouraged by these returns, he increased his investments.
However, when he attempted to withdraw his funds, he was informed of penalties and taxes. He paid approximately ₹26 lakh in penalties and an additional ₹2.4 lakh to create a new account, but still could not access his funds.
Further demands for ₹13 lakh to release his money led him to realize he had been defrauded.
The accused individuals include Deepa, Anubhav Goyal, Ashutosh Kumar, and entities Conforge Finance and Coinbase. The police are investigating the matter, and authorities have warned the public about such scams.
They advise exercising caution when dealing with online investment opportunities and verifying the legitimacy of platforms before investing.