Cyber fraud: 2 held for duping Guj businessman of Rs 7.15 lakh

The Ahmedabad cyber crimebranch has arrested two persons for allegedly duping abusinessman of Rs 7.15 lakh on the pretext of helping him getback his security deposit made for an online auction,officials said on Thursday.

The accused, Bhupat Savani (50) and his son BrijeshSavani (26), both residents of Ghodasar area in Gujarat'sAhmedabad city, were arrested on Wednesday on charges ofcheating, the cyber crime branch said in a release.

In 2019, the city-based businessman took part in anonline auction conducted by the state's geology and miningcommissioner for 32 sand blocks in Sabarkantha district.

As part of the bidding process, the businessmandeposited a refundable security amount and linked his bankaccount with an online portal meant for the bidding process.

Since he won two out of 32 blocks during the onlinebidding, he was entitled to get a refund of Rs 7.15 lakh forthe remaining 30 blocks, said the release.

As the businessmen did not receive any refund, the twoaccused got in touch with him.

They posed as government employees working with thecommissioner's office, and told the businessman that they canhelp him get the refund using their connections in the office.

However, after obtaining necessary details from thevictim, the accused allegedly linked their own bank accountwith the system and transferred Rs 7.15 lakh to it through anonline process, the cyber crime branch said.

A preliminary investigation into the case revealed thetwo accused knew about the nitty-gritty of the system as theyare also into the business of sand mining since 2013, it said.

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