Two elderly Indian citizens have been defrauded of more than Rs 3.2 crore (approximately $431,000) in a sophisticated crypto investment scam involving fake trading platforms. The Hyderabad police have unveiled the details of these advanced social-engineering schemes specifically targeting senior investors with limited cryptocurrency knowledge.
The first victim, whose identity was not disclosed, lost Rs 2.58 crore ($310,000). He was initially contacted through a Telegram group named "AP Helping Hand India" by an individual calling himself Aman Kumar, who presented himself as a professional stock trader. Kumar promoted cryptocurrency arbitrage as a high-return opportunity, convincing the victim to pay an Rs 8,500 registration fee in September 2025. The victim was then instructed to download a crypto wallet called "Base" via a malicious link and was pressured into sharing personal and banking information under the guise of maximizing investment returns. One fraudster even impersonated a "profit-distribution manager" named Ajit Doval.
The scammers displayed a fake dashboard showing an inflated account balance of Rs 4.55 crore ($5.48 million) to encourage larger deposits. Between September 4 and December 27, the victim transferred Rs 2.58 crore for purported investments, taxes, and transaction fees. All withdrawal attempts failed, even after paying additional "taxes," and the fraudsters later demanded another Rs 80 lakh ($96,000) to process withdrawals. The victim eventually reported the crime to the Rachakonda cybercrime police.
The second victim was a 69-year-old retired bank manager who lost Rs 63.15 lakh ($76,000). He was contacted via WhatsApp by someone impersonating a U.S.-based stockbroker. Convinced to register on a fraudulent trading portal, he made an initial deposit of Rs 13.56 lakh ($16,300). The scammers continued to levy various charges until his savings were exhausted, at which point he realized the fraud and approached the police.
Authorities have filed cases under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Sections 66C and 66D of the Information Technology Act. Law enforcement cautioned that these criminals are deliberately targeting older citizens seeking extra retirement income, exploiting their lack of technical familiarity with cryptocurrency platforms.
