Kolkata man attends free online course on stock trading, ends up losing Rs 20 lakh in scam

In a recent case of cyber fraud, a man from Kolkata fell victim to an online stock trading scam, losing Rs 20 lakh. The victim reportedly came across a Facebook ad promising tips and tricks for successful stock trading. However, upon joining the associated group to gain insights into trading, he was deceived of his savings.

Pradip Sarkar, a 58-year-old resident of Beliaghata, lodged a complaint with the Kolkata police's cyber cell. He disclosed that both he and his 27-year-old son, both cancer patients, required funds for treatment and future plans. Sarkar, also worked for the CSTC and had a demat account through which he invested in stocks. His stocks were also giving him good profits, reports Indian Express. However, even with the profits, Sarkar was seeking ways to earn more because of the medical bills and others.

One day, he stumbled upon a Facebook link advertising a free online stock trading course in December. Intrigued by the opportunity to learn, he enrolled in the course. After engaging with the organisers, he was added to a WhatsApp group and provided with a counterfeit certificate. The organisers also offered him stock tips and recommendations within the WhatsApp group, accompanied by testimonials from other members.

Sarkar reveals that the scammers had divided the members like him into six Telegram groups. "They called it 'Unified Organisational Layout Plan' and we started investing into stocks via an institutional trading platform called 'Zoksa'. They suggested that we should sell off all our insurance policies and stocks that we were investing in and then invest in them…. At that time, my Zoksa account showed that my money was invested in US stocks and my investments had reached Rs 1 crore. So, I kept investing through the company," he revealed.

However, when he tried to withdraw his money, he faced problems. When he raised the issue with the organisers, they only gave him Rs 10,000 and asked him to pay Rs 13 lakh as tax and get a tax clearance certificate before withdrawing the rest. "On February 2, they told us that we can withdraw all the money after we pay Rs 13 lakh as tax and get a tax clearance certificate."

It was when Sarkar contacted other members of the Telegram groups they had created and found out that most of them were fake or international call centres, he realised he had been scammed. Sarkar said he lost Rs 20 lakh between January 16 and 28. He said he had lost all his savings and the stocks he had bought himself. He lodged a police complaint on February 9 and his case is now under investigation.

Notably, this is not an isolated incident of stock trading scams. In another similar case of a stock trading scam, an online fraud scheme victimised an IT professional from Aluva who was seeking substantial returns from online trading. The victim ended up losing Rs 50 lakh.