Private Bank Employee Defrauded by his Friend of Rs 88 Lakh in Fake Online Investment Scheme

The city police recently arrested a man accused of cheating his friend out of more than Rs 88 lakh by promising high returns in an online investment scam.

The victim, J Robert Kim, works as a manager at a private bank. According to his complaint, in 2023, his friend, V Rajasekar (28), persuaded him to invest in a finance firm that he claimed to run with a friend named Dhinakaran. Rajasekar convinced Robert that the company would offer excellent returns on investment.

Robert first transferred Rs 4 lakh in February 2023. To make the investment seem legitimate, Rajasekar returned Rs 1 lakh as profit from the investment. This was a strategy often used by scammers to make the scam appear more convincing. Encouraged by this initial return, Robert was persuaded to invest more money.

Over time, Robert transferred a total of Rs 88 lakh in several instalments to the bank accounts of Rajasekar and another person named Pavithra, who was also involved in the scam.

Further police investigation uncovered that no such person named Dhinakaran existed, and there was no finance company. Rajasekar had been deceiving his friend all along. As a result, Rajasekar was arrested, produced before a magistrate, and sent into judicial custody.

This case serves as a reminder to be cautious when dealing with investment opportunities, especially those that promise quick or unusually high returns.