Posing as supplier, fraudster dupes Chandigarh businessman of over Rs 60L

A case of cyber fraud involving international online transactions and medical supply scam has come to light in Chandigarh, where a local businessman has been duped of over Rs 60.65 lakh. The cyber cell police station registered a case on June 11, which involved fake foreign buyers, fraudulent pharmaceutical orders and multiple bank transactions over six months, starting September 25, 2024.

Advertisement

According to the FIR, complainant Sunil Kumar, a resident of Sector 32-C, Chandigarh, was approached through a Facebook profile by the name Morris Pauline offering a business opportunity to supply Avastin powder, a medicinal product, to an alleged US-based company, Actelion Laboratory. The modus operandi involved fake WhatsApp and email communications from ‘officials’ of Actelion Pharma.

The complainant received an email on September 25, 2024, requesting a supply of 300 kg of Avastin powder per month, which routed him to a WhatsApp contact. Quoting Rs 99,000 per kg, the supplier recommended was Sharma Enterprises based in Indore, Madhya Pradesh. Following the instructions, Sunil contacted the seller and made an initial payment of Rs 13 lakh for 50 kg of Avastin powder into two accounts of Sharma Enterprises.

Over some time, the fraudsters increased their demands by citing delivery issues. Sharma Enterprises allegedly claimed that a truck accident caused delivery delays, following which they sought an additional Rs 10 lakh. Another Rs 3.5 lakh was paid for “assistance”. A fake shipping invoice was also generated by a so-called logistics company, Motion Cargo International. The complainant paid Rs 92,552 and another Rs 12 lakh (Rs 6 lakh in two accounts) for a second batch of 50 kg of the product.

In total, Rs 28.5 lakh was transferred to Sharma Enterprises and Rs 1,86,104 to Motion Cargo International. The scamsters offered a fake USFDA certificate and asked the complainant to pay Rs 34,15,681 to a person. Payments were made in instalments to various accounts, and the certificate was received on November 26. Later, to open an offshore account to complete the international business transaction, Sunil paid Rs 9.68 lakh for an “IMF Referral Code” and $10,000 as “account opening fee,” along with $4,000 towards an IMF deposit. Despite transferring a staggering Rs 60,65,883, Sunil did not receive any product or return payment.

“All attempts to contact the buyers and suppliers failed. I was misled into believing that the operation was legitimate due to ‘professional’ communication and documentation provided,” the complainant stated. Police have registered a case under multiple sections of the BNS.