Meghalaya’s online investment scam: Over 700 duped, police probing nationwide links

Meghalaya, Sept 16:  After Assam, Meghalaya has fallen prey to fraudulent online investment schemes that have duped over 700 people out of more than Rs 1 crore.

Superintendent of Police (Sadar) and Cyber Wing head, Pankaj Kumar Rasgania, informed The Assam Tribune that so far, eight cases have been registered in Khasi and Garo Hills.

“There are about 700 people who have been defrauded in this online scam, but since the matter was reported early, the scammers couldn’t target more people,” he added.

SP Rasgania further explained that the scam, which began around five months ago, lured locals by promising high returns.

“There are 700 victims because some invested lakhs, while others put in just a few thousand or even hundreds. The exact figures will be uncovered in due time, as we are currently following leads,” Rasgania said.

He also mentioned that preliminary investigations suggest the scammers are spread across the country, with multiple accounts registered in various locations, including one in Hong Kong.

“It’s too early to determine whether this is an international ring or just individuals from within the country. We are coordinating with several cyber wing experts from police forces across the nation,” he said.

The modus operandi was simple yet effective, according to the police. “The scammers lured gullible individuals through social media, encouraging them to invest in a scheme with promises of huge returns in a short period of time,” SP Rasgania added.

The scammers convinced investors that their money would be invested in cryptocurrency, promising returns as high as 50%. However, once the investors transferred their hard-earned money through a fake application called "Datameer", the app shut down, and the scammers disappeared.

He further noted a steady rise in such cybercrime cases and mentioned that the state government's cybercrime wing has managed to freeze bank accounts (from 2019 to date) that were attempting to defraud investors to the tune of Rs 2.4 crore.