Published: 28.03.2022
Article reading time:
2 minutes.
An Indian citizen suffered from the actions of cryptocurrency scammers who invested on his behalf in bitcoin. The total loss of the deceived user’s funds amounted to $27,000.
The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in the Indian state of Gujarat has warned the public that due to a lack of knowledge about investing in cryptocurrencies, people can become victims of intruders. Law enforcement agencies in India have reported a case in which scammers fraudulently embezzled Rs 22 lakh (about $27,000) from an Indian citizen, Harshad Patel.
In 2017, his friend and business partner Kamlesh Patel introduced him to married couple Alpesh & Bharti Suhagia to help him invest in bitcoin. They convinced Harshad Patel to give them the money to manipulate the Bitcoin market on his behalf.
The Suhagias told Harshad that it would take some time to prepare the Bitcoin wallet. In the meantime, they introduced him to Prashant Brahmbhatt, who also convinced the gullible investor to invest in the Senar Wallet project.
Harshad first made a profit on his investment between July and August 2017, which was 1.24 lakh rupees (about $1,700). Later, however, he no longer received any return on his investment, and was unable to return the principal, despite repeated requests for a refund. The deceived user filed a complaint with the police only in March 2022.
The Indian police said that this is not the only case of cryptocurrency fraud. In February, police in the city of Ahmedabad arrested four people on charges of running the Bulltron cryptocurrency pyramid to promote investments in TRX. Last month, the Indian police uncovered another cryptocurrency scheme that managed to raise about $5 million.
Given the hype surrounding crypto investments, in February, the Advertising Standards Board of India (ASCI) released guidelines for advertising digital assets in the country. Advertisers should warn people about the risks of investing in cryptocurrencies and the lack of legal protection for users.
Source: Bits
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