Hyderabad: In a fresh case of cyber fraud, a 51-year-old doctor from Mehdipatnam has been cheated of ₹1.91 crore by fraudsters posing as stock market investment advisers. The scammers trapped the victim through WhatsApp groups promising high returns, using the names of fake SEBI-registered brokers and fabricated online trading platforms.
How the Scam Unfolded
- In June 2025, the doctor was added to two WhatsApp groups — “A-677 Core Member Group” and “A-51 UTI Wealth Growth Group”.
- Fraudsters impersonated a SEBI-registered broker, “Sanya Kapoor”, and an investment mentor, Imtiyazur Rahman, to gain his trust.
- Over two months, the doctor transferred huge sums, including ₹50 lakh as ‘service fee’ and ₹20 lakh as ‘taxes’, into multiple bank accounts.
- The fake trading app used by the scammers displayed a fictitious balance of ₹9.86 crore to convince him of his “profits”.
The fraud came to light when the scammers demanded an extra ₹10 lakh for tax clearance, prompting the doctor to suspect foul play and approach Hyderabad cybercrime police on Monday.
Police Investigation
Cybercrime officials have registered two separate cases under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the IT Act. Sleuths are now tracking the bank transactions and WhatsApp chats to trace the culprits.
“Money transferred by the victims was routed through multiple accounts and withdrawn. We are in the process of identifying the beneficiary account holders,” an investigator told TOI.
Wider Trend of Medical Professionals Targeted
This case follows a similar fraud in Kerala, where a doctor lost ₹4.43 crore in a WhatsApp stock trading scam. In another incident, a healthcare worker from Lucknow was cheated of ₹2.10 lakh by a scammer posing as a UK-based doctor on social media.
Cybercrime experts warn that professionals, especially those with high disposable incomes, are increasingly being targeted through fake investment schemes and romance scams, often via WhatsApp and social media platforms.
