Moga resident duped of Rs 42 lakh in ‘customs parcel’ cyber scam; case registered

A resident of Moga has been duped of Rs 42.25 lakh in a cyber fraud involving a customs parcel, police said on Wednesday.

The victim, identified as Darshan Singh Milli, was allegedly cheated by cyber fraudsters posing as officials, following which the Moga Cyber Crime Cell has registered a case against unidentified persons.

According to the investigation led by the Station House Officer (SHO) of the Cyber Crime Cell, the fraud began when Darshan Singh received a call from an unknown number. The caller claimed to be an official and informed him that a parcel addressed to him had been intercepted at the airport by the Customs Department.

The scammers alleged that the parcel contained “objectionable material” and warned of legal consequences. To clear his name and avoid action, the victim was pressured into transferring money to various bank accounts provided by the fraudsters.

Police said the money was transferred across 17 different bank accounts.

An FIR has been registered. The Cyber Cell is currently tracing the digital footprints and bank account details used in the heist.

This incident comes amid a growing number of cyber fraud cases in Punjab. It follows, by just two days, the suicide attempt by former Inspector General (IG) of Police Amar Singh Chahal in Patiala.

Chahal, a 1990-batch IPS officer, allegedly shot himself in the chest on December 22 after being duped of over Rs 8.10 crore in a ‘stock market’ investment scam. In his final note, the former IG expressed deep regret that despite having warned the public about such scams during his career, he himself fell prey to their “sophisticated methods”.