Be alert if you receive anonymous messages or mobile phone calls, stating you have won a lucky draw and asking you to deposit processing fee in the bank accounts opened to receive the lucky draw cash.
Such messages are being received by mobile phone users on almost daily basis. In several cases, the gullible are being entrapped and they lose their hard- earned money, amounting to lakhs.
In connection with such cases, Special Task Force (STF) Uttarakhand had recently arrested a Nigerian national Casmier C Madunatam from Nawada (West Delhi), who was allegedly involved in swindling people through social networking like Facebook, internet banking and the like.
STF SSP Dr Sadanand Date said that such cases are rising in the State and people must be on their guard. Based on the information provided by the accused, the police had recovered some important documents related to the case. Teams will seek police remand of the accused from the court, he added.
SSP Date said that over the past few months, cases related to anonymous messages or phone calls luring the people in the lucky draw trap and swindling them subsequently are on the rise. STF teams had also received complaints of such nature from Pauri, Haridwar, Dehradun and some other places.By making phone calls or through Facebook or internet banking, the gang members dupe the victims of crores in the name of lottery or other schemes. Teams are reviewing the complaints on case by case basis and are working on them seriously.
The police officer said that reviewing past such cases has revealed that the gang members are tracking the persons on mobile phone calls, messages, Facebook and websites or other social networking sites in the name of lucky draw or lottery.It is strange but true that in some cases, the people, especially the youth, are disclosing their identities as well as other details on the Facebook and other social networking sites.
In the name of lottery or lucky draw, the gangs lure persons across the country and swindle them of crores by prodding them to deposit money amounting to lakhs through ATM or internet banking.Investigation revealed that the gangs had opened accounts by submitting false documents. He has called a meeting of the bank officers to discuss the issue, the police officer said.
He further said that teams are working on several aspects of the cyber crimes by questioning the complainants as well as tracking the accounts of facebook and internet banking of the offenders who are operating through gangs from various places like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and other cities.
The involvement of local Indians in these gangs cannot be ruled out either, he added,SSP Date appealed to the local residents to inform the police on telephone number 0135-2651689 if they receive any information of such cases through phone calls or other social networking like Facebook and internet banking.Police would act strictly according to the law, he said.