Pune: A woman was swindled out of ₹12 lakh by a cybercriminal who befriended her on social media, promising expensive gifts from abroad.

The scam unfolded after the woman, a resident of Pune, made contact with the fraudster through a social media platform, where he falsely claimed to be working overseas. Building trust, the scammer eventually lured her by offering to send lavish gifts.

The fraudster later informed the woman that the gifts had arrived at the airport but were being held by customs officials. To release the gifts, she was told that a large sum of money was required to cover the customs fees.

The woman was instructed to deposit the money into a specified bank account. Over time, she transferred a total of ₹11.95 lakh in multiple installments, believing she would soon receive the gifts.

However, when no gifts arrived and the scammer became unreachable, the woman realized she had been defrauded. She subsequently filed a complaint at Bharti Vidyapeeth Police Station. Inspector Sharad Zine of the Crime Branch has taken charge of the investigation.

In another case of cybercrime in Pune, a young man was duped of ₹11.23 lakh by scammers who promised high returns on investments in the stock market. The fraudsters initiated contact by sending an investment opportunity via SMS, tempting the victim with the prospect of lucrative gains.

Initially, the victim invested in the scheme and even received some returns, which led him to trust the fraudsters. Encouraged by the initial returns, the victim continued to transfer more funds into the scammer’s account.

However, the returns soon stopped, and the victim realized that he had fallen prey to a scam. The man has since filed a complaint at Lonikand Police Station.