Kolkata: Kolkata Police and Bidhannagar Police have launched separate investigations into two fraud cases that allegedly cheated residents of Ekbalpore and New Town of more than Rs 2.29 crore.
In one of the biggest financial frauds reported under Kolkata Police this year, Ekbalpore police registered a case after a complaint was lodged on July 20. Investigators alleged that Shabbir Ahmed, along with Sajda Begum and several unidentified associates, ran an online investment scam over nearly three years.
According to police, Ahmed, posing as a professional bank consultant, persuaded a local resident from 2023 onwards to invest with promises of high, guaranteed returns. The victim allegedly transferred Rs 2,09,40,000 through multiple UPI transactions. After receiving the money, the accused neither paid any returns nor refunded the investment.
Cops suspect the accused communicated through Telegram and WhatsApp while using fake identities and fabricated investment platforms to appear credible. Investigators are tracing the digital trail of the transactions and attempting to identify the syndicate.
In a separate case, New Town cops registered a complaint after a resident of the Shapoorji Pallonji Sukhobristi complex alleged losing Rs 20 lakh in a fake business deal.
The complainant told police that he met accused Sourabh Hossain on July 6. During later meetings at a mall in New Town, Hossain and his associates allegedly convinced him to pay Rs 20,00,000 in advance for a bulk rice supply contract. After receiving the money online, they allegedly stopped responding and neither supplied the goods nor returned the amount.
Police have registered a case under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, and investigations into both frauds are underway.