Bengaluru techie loses Rs 2.24 crore to cyber fraudsters posing as Customs and NCB officials
Bengaluru, Apr 11: A 52-year-old software engineer has lost Rs 2.24 crore to the cyber fraudsters who swindled him by posing as Delhi Customs and Narcotics Control Bureau officials, police said on Thursday.
This incident comes close on the heels of a 29-year-old woman lawyer from Bengaluru losing Rs 14.57 lakh who ended up stripping on Skype video conference before the fraudsters.
The mode of operation adopted by the fraudsters to dupe Kumarasamy Sivakkumar from Jakkur was similar to the one faced by the woman lawyer.
The swindlers called the software engineer between March 18 to March 27 saying that they were from Customs Department and that an air parcel from Delhi to Malaysia in his name has been held back at Delhi Airport since it carried 16 passports, 58 bank ATM cards, and 140 gram Ecstasy drug tablets (also known as MDMA, a banned narcotic), police said.
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The call was then supposedly transferred to the ‘Narcotics Control Bureau’ where the ‘officer’ forced him to download Skype, come online, police said, adding that later, the fraudsters told him that if he wanted to get rid of the case then he should transfer them money.
Sivakkumar told police that he paid Rs 2.24 crore in eight installments through Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) and Immediate Payment Service (IMPS).
The victim realised that he had been cheated only on April 5 and then approached police to lodge a complaint against the unknown fraudsters at the Bengaluru North East Cyber Crime Police Station.
According to police sources, since the beginning of the month about 25 people have fallen prey to the fraudsters and lost over Rs four crore in just the North East Cyber Crime Police Station limits. In most of the cases, a similar mode of operation was adopted, they added.
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Bommai turns down honorary doctorate, calls for rethink on awards to politicians
Bengaluru (PTI): BJP MP and former Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has declined to accept an honorary doctorate from Haveri University, saying it is not appropriate to confer such honours on politicians or those engaged in self-motivated social service.
He said the love and trust of the people are the greatest honours in public life.
“I extend my heartfelt gratitude to the Vice-Chancellor, Pro Vice-Chancellor, Registrar and Syndicate members of Haveri University for deciding to confer an honorary doctorate on me,” Bommai, MP from Haveri, said in a statement issued on Sunday night.
“However, I have informed the Vice-Chancellor that I will not accept the honour. As I am engaged in public service, I do not seek any awards. I believe the love and trust of the people are the greatest honours. Therefore, I humbly reiterate that I will not accept the honorary doctorate,” he said.
Bommai said honorary doctorates should be awarded to individuals who have rendered distinguished and significant service in a particular field over a long period.
“It is my personal view that it is not appropriate to confer honorary doctorates on politicians or those engaged in social service out of self-motivation. I request that this matter be reconsidered,” he added.
Recently, Karnataka Higher Education Minister M C Sudhakar proposed the constitution of an expert panel to regulate the awarding of honorary doctorates.
In a letter to Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot, who is also the Chancellor of public universities in the state, the minister highlighted the lack of standards in conferring such honours.
