The police have registered a case against the accused under the IT Act and have also invoked sections pertaining to cheating under the Indian Penal Code, officers said.
A 20-year-old law student from Pune, who was searching for an education loan online, was cheated to the tune of Rs 90,000 after cyber fraudsters she contacted on a website allegedly misled her into paying the amount in multiple transfers, the police said.
On Monday evening, the student filed a first information report (FIR) regarding the fraud at Dehu Road police station in Pimpri-Chinchwad, following which the police registered a case under the Information Technology Act and also invoked sections pertaining to cheating under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against the accused, officers said.
According to the FIR, the complainant was searching online for an education loan on the night of April 1 for completing certain academic requirements for her law degree. During the search she found a platform offering education loans and contacted the phone numbers posted on its website. The person who responded to the call said she could obtain a loan of Rs 5 lakh and asked her to send her identity documents and credentials, it said.
Subsequently, she received multiple calls from various people claiming to be from the same platform and sought transfers from her on the pretext of processing fees, security charges, taxation fees, ‘RBI interest’ and so on, the FIR added. After making half a dozen transfers, totalling over Rs 90,000, she spoke with relatives and friends who pointed out that she had been swindled, the woman said.