MBA Graduate Loses Rs.9.29 Lakh in Pig-Butchering Fraud

Hyderabad: Cyberbad cyber crime police registered a case after the 41-year-old MBA graduate from Bachupally reported losing Rs 9,29,786 in a ‘pork butchering’ scam carried out through a fake online trading platform.

Police said the victim received a Facebook friend request on November 5 from a profile named Amrutha Chowdary, who claimed that they studied in the same college. He shifted the conversation to trading and told her that even though he had lost money before, he could help her recoup all her losses within three months. He then started guiding her on WhatsApp via number 9034562139, claiming that he was living in Chennai, had completed a finance module in London, was a manager in his father’s company Srinivas Constructions and was in full-time trading.

He instructed her to download a trading app and create an account, saying the profits would be made by trading gold yields in US dollars. On November 8, he was asked to transfer $50,000 to a bank account. When he asked why the Indian accounts were being used for dollar-based transactions, the woman told him they were authorized currency conversion accounts. The app later showed a profit of Rs 4,608, which he was able to withdraw on November 9, which convinced him that the platform was real.

He then advised her to invest in a “$10,000 bonus plan” with a 12 percent bonus and no risk. On November 13, he transferred Rs 8,84,394 to another account in the same bank. However, when he tried to withdraw the entire amount on November 14, the request was unsuccessful. Although the application’s virtual profit was $36,175.32, none of it was reached.

He contacted the cybercrime helpline in 1930 and later filed a complaint stating that he had transferred a total of Rs 9,34,394, of which only Rs 4,608 was returned. The total amount lost due to cybercrime was Rs.9,29,786. Police said the investigation is ongoing.