There are multiple investment options these days, and yes, there are opportunities to earn passive income, but there is no shortcut to doubling your money.
However, unawareness and greed sometimes lead to heavy losses. Recently, our team came across the case of Sunil (name changed), who lost all his lifetime savings after joining one WhatsApp group.
Here is the complete story of how Sunil got trapped in that scam, which leaves important lessons for all.
Sunil: Hello ADB, I am a victim of fraud and would like to share all the details.
It’s a very tough time for me due to the loss of my hard-earned money, which I saved during my service period.
The perpetrators are very tech-savvy and seem to work as a team of about 4-5 people, excluding the WhatsApp group members, which number around 60.
ADB: I see. Please go on.
Sunil: I was added to the group named the Earn Money Pioneer Club (name changed) by an assistant named Rahul Gupta (name changed) on 06.03.2024.
The main member is Aamir, known as Dean in the group. Initially, Dean focused on the Indian market, making some profits. However, when the Indian market underperformed due to the elections, he advised us to move to cryptocurrency.
ADB: And then?
Sunil: He then suggested joining Aika Exchange (name changed), which is UK-based, and I did so. A new service manager from Aika, Charles Davis, supported me in opening an account and provided assistance.
I made my first transaction on 02.04.2024 through their Indian Aika customer, who provided account details and confirmed the INR to USD conversion, adding it to my assets.
ADB: How did the trading go initially?
Sunil: During the initial period, I earned profits with Bitcoins and the energy sector (future, short-term, and long-term trading) as recommended by Dean.
Transactions were smooth initially, though I did incur some losses due to my own assessment. Dean later advised that the exchange was listing an IPO for the energy sector, which was expected to yield huge profits.
I was allotted some coins that made good profits. This pattern continued for two more IPOs, with credits provided by the exchange to be returned after allotment to enable selling.
ADB: When did things start going wrong?
Sunil: Up to the second IPO, everything was smooth. After the third IPO allotment, which exceeded my expectations, I had to return approximately 25 lakhs in credit exchange.
I did so, but then the exchange issued an urgent notice about fund verification due to money laundering issues in India and the UK . They required users to submit 1% of their total assets, which was nearly 25 lakhs for me.
I argued and requested that I don’t have the money, but they denied my request.
ADB: What did you do next?
Sunil: I arranged the 25 lakhs as a debt from my relatives and asked them to release all my money. The exchange released 10,000 USDT into my account through their Indian merchant.
However, I then received a message from the exchange regarding tax as per UK law, which was another 1% of my total assets, approximately 25 lakhs.
I was shocked and argued with them, along with Dean, to release my money. After several discussions, Dean agreed to deposit 10 lakhs, and I was to pay the balance.
ADB: Did you manage to resolve it?
Sunil: I did not pay the balance amount and realized it was a trap. I threatened to file an FIR, but they didn’t respond and casually asked for the balance payment.
I requested at least my initial investment of approximately one crore to be released without any profit, but they did not respond. My account has now been suspended, and I am unable to log in.
ADB: This is indeed a serious situation. You can file an FIR against this and report this issue to cybercrime for further assistance.
Such frauds happen because of our negligence and the greed to earn more money. And what worse is cryptocurrency investment is not legal in India, it is therefore important to stay more cautious and follow steps:
