Gwalior CA loses Rs 21 crore in cyber fraud after being promised high returns on investments

A 70-year-old chartered accountant from Gwalior lost over Rs 21 crore in a six-month cyber investment scam after fraudsters lured him through WhatsApp with fake high-return promises. Police have frozen Rs 1.75 crore and are tracing the transferred funds

Gwalior: A 70-year-old chartered accountant from Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh lost more than Rs 21 crore over six months to cyber fraudsters who allegedly lured him into investing in a fake scheme promising “high returns”, police said.

The police have managed to freeze about Rs 1.75 crore so far and are tracing the bank accounts to which the money was transferred, an official said on Sunday.

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The victim, a resident of the Inderganj area, lodged a complaint with the cybercrime branch after realising he had been cheated, following which the investigation was launched.

The fraud began in the last week of December 2025 when a woman contacted the complainant through WhatsApp, posing as an investment adviser.

She initially gained his confidence by showing returns on small investments before the fraudsters created a fake online investment portal that displayed fictitious profits, Deputy Superintendent of Police Sanjeev Nayan Sharma said.

Believing the returns to be genuine, the complainant invested more than Rs 21 crore over a period of six months. However, when he tried to withdraw the money, the fraudsters began making excuses and later demanded several crore rupees more to release the funds, the officer said.

According to the complaint, more than 100 transactions were carried out from the victim’s four bank accounts.

Further investigation is underway.