Youth arrested for allegedly cheating man of ₹1 crore

The cyber police arrested K.P. Muhammed Saleem, 21, a native of Mukkam in Kozhikode, for allegedly cheating a Payyannur resident of nearly ₹1 crore by promising huge profits through online share trading.

The arrest was made by cyber inspector Krishnakumar and his team after a case was registered by the Payyannur police on a complaint filed by V.V. Ganeshan, a resident of Payyannur. The accused allegedly gained the victim’s trust through WhatsApp, posing as a representative of an online share trading firm and persuaded him to invest money with assurances of high returns.

According to the complainant, he transferred ₹97.40 lakh from two of his bank accounts in Payyannur to multiple bank accounts operated by the accused between July 3 and July 23, 2024. The money was allegedly siphoned off without providing any profits or returning the principal amount.

After the case was registered, the Payyannur police handed over the investigation to the cyber cell. The accused had reportedly gone abroad immediately after the fraud. He was intercepted and arrested a few days ago at Kozhikode while attempting to flee the country.

The accused was produced in court and remanded in judicial custody. The police said further investigation was on to trace the money trail and identify whether more victims were involved in the online trading scam.