Fake captain defrauds woman of ₹17.5 lakh, take these steps to stay cautious

Recently, a case was reported where a woman claimed that a fake captain had defrauded her of ₹17.5 lakh. This is how it happened: Manpreet Kaur's husband, who works in the Army as Naik, was approached by a colleague and was introduced to ‘Captain’ Sagar Guleria, who – he claimed – had helped several Army personnel procure housing loan assistance and government subsidies.

Her husband – at Guleria's instance -- applied for a personal loan of ₹17.5 lakh, which was transferred to the joint bank account of husband and wife. Then Guleria told them to transfer the entire money to his account so that he could apply for the assistance and subsidy.

Then, when they transferred the money through RTGS, Guleria stopped taking their calls and completely disappeared from the scene. This is one of the many frauds that have been happening all around for the ease of money transfer through net banking and UPI, among other options. 

Furthermore, in the first half of 2024-25, banking fraud cases surged 27 per cent over the corresponding period of the previous year, RBI data showed.

Be careful: Take the following steps

1. Never transfer money on any pretext: In this instance, the victims were persuaded to transfer the money to the perpetrator's bank account. This is a complete red flag.

Why would someone convince you to transfer the money for any reason but to commit fraud? Several cases of digital fraud also came to light, where victims were told to transfer the money to prove the genuineness.

2. Do not trust a stranger: Seeking help for subsidy and housing assistance should ideally happen via a formal channel and not through some person you meet unofficially. A new person promising to help you financially is just a stranger whom you are reposing your faith in. There is more risk than benefit.

3. Reviews from friends: It is always recommended to ask around and seek feedback from the people around you. Sometimes you get too engrossed in the situation at hand, and as a result, you develop tunnel vision and fail to get the overall perspective of the situation. In this case, if the victim had asked around about the perpetrator, he would have probably been told that several Army personnel had been defrauded with a similar modus operandi.

4. Verify credentials independently: Carefully cross-check the identity and background of anyone offering financial help through official websites, helplines, or government portals before sharing money or documents.

5. Avoid sharing sensitive details: Never discuss or disclose personal data. Do keep in mind, personal documents such as bank statements, loan credentials, Aadhaar details, ATM details, or any other such information are privileged information. Such facts should never be disclosed to any unknown person.

6. Prefer official channels of communication: For subsidies, incentives, personal loans, housing schemes, or credit cards, depend only on official bank representatives or government-authorised agents instead of middlemen or unverified contacts.

7. Report suspicious activity immediately: If you sense foul play, promptly raise the issue and inform your bank. In your best interest, also file a complaint with cybercrime authorities at the earliest to minimise losses.

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