West Bengal: Visually impaired student duped of Rs 50,000, cyber cell recovers amount

The incident occurred last year in November while the student was listening to a spiritual content on YouTube, when he encountered a contact number for an astrologer.

Written by Sweety Kumari

Kolkata | January 11, 2025 06:05 AM IST

2 min read

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A visually impaired scholar student residing at the Jadavpur University hostel, recently, fell victim to an online fraud, after he was duped of Rs. 50,659 by a fraudulent astrologer.

The incident occurred last year in November while the student was listening to a spiritual content on YouTube, when he encountered a contact number for an astrologer, who promised to enhance his career prospects and bring him good luck. The student, believing the fraudulent claims, paid the astrologer Rs. 50,659 in three installments as demanded. Subsequently, the astrologer blocked all communication with the victim.

Deceived and distressed, the student contacted the South Suburban Division (SSD) Cyber Cell to report the incident.

“Taking the complaint seriously, the Cyber Cell initiated an investigation, lodged a complaint with the MHA NCRP Portal, and contacted the beneficiary bank. Through these efforts, the Cyber Cell successfully blocked the fraudster’s bank account and recovered the entire amount of Rs. 50,659, which was subsequently returned to the victim’s account,” said a senior SSD police official.

The student acknowledged the Kolkata Police and Cyber team’s efforts who retrieved the amount within 21 days.

“I want to give a special thanks to the Kolkata police and the cyber cell. The cyber team of South Suburban Division acted swiftly and recovered the entire amount within 21 days. I am visually impaired and studying in Jadavpur University….My father is a senior citizen and can’t work properly. I am continuing my education with the help of scholarships. On November 7, 2024 I was duped of a large amount of money. I was depressed. On November 27, I filed a complaint. Kolkata SSD Cyber Cell started the probe and within a month I got my money back. I would request everyone if they have faced any cyber fraud, please don’t hesitate, go to the cyber cell,” he wrote.

Sweety Kumari

Sweety Kumari reports from West Bengal for The Indian Express. She is a journalist with over a decade of experience in the media industry. Covers Crime, Defence, Health , Politics etc and writes on trending topics. With a keen eye for investigative and human-interest stories. She has honed her craft across diverse beats including aviation, health, incidents etc. Sweety delivers impactful journalism that informs and engages audiences. Sweety Kumari is a graduate of Calcutta University with an Honors degree in Journalism from Jaipuria College and a PG in Mass Communication from Jadavpur University. Originally from Bihar, she is brought up in Kolkata and completed her education from Kendriya Vidyalaya SaltLake. Multilingual, Sweety is fluent in English, Hindi, Bengali, and Maithili. She started her career as an Entertainment and lifestyle journalist with a newsportal in Kolkata. She is working with The Indian Express for 8 years now. ... Read More

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cyber cell fraud case Jadavpur University (JU) West Bengal Police