2 held including Nigerian for duping Rs 1 cr in online lottery

Two people, including a Nigerian national, were arrested from Delhi Wednesday for allegedly cheating some people from Telangana of around Rs one crore in an online lottery scam, police said. The duo-- a 37-year-old Nigerian and a woman from Nagaland -- used to send SMSs to people on their phones by claiming that they have won an online lottery prize to the tune of several crores of Rupees. They asked such people to send their details by e-mail and to transfer money as 'fees' towards customs procedure and other charges to claim the prize money, police said.

The two accused, who met in 2015, hatched a conspiracy to cheat people and gave them bank account numbers in which the money has to be deposited. The victims paid the amounts through online transactions on different occasions, police said,adding that the duo stopped responding to queries after the money was deposited. The victims later filed a police complaint. Police said their investigations led to the arrest of the duo from Delhi. The two, on being questioned, reportedly confessed that they had cheated people from different parts of Telangana to the tune of around Rs one crore through the online lottery scam.

(With inputs from agencies.)