RAJ KUMAR
Ranchi, Aug.19: A Pragya Kendra (Common Service Centre) operator in Chutia, Vishnu Kumar Pandit, landed in trouble after he shared his HDFC account details to a cyber fraud who had turned up before him in the guise of a student seeking help to deposit fees.
The cyber fraud on July 17 asked Pundit to share the latter’s account details to enable someone transfer Rs 60000 cash required to deposit fee. The fraud also offered one percent as service charge. Pundit, who had lost his job during Covid-19 and depending on the business from Pragya Kendra to run his family, agreed. As Pundit shared his account details, Rs 60000 credited to his account and he paid the same to the fraud mistaking him as a student in lieu of service charge. The fraud paid him the service charge.
Everything remained normal after this transaction. All of a sudden on August 10, when he tried to withdraw some money for personal work, he realised that his account had been blocked. He contacted HDFC officials, who informed him that his account was freezed following the direction of Kerala cyber cell as his account was used in a cyber fraud.
Pandit, who has no criminal background and who always believed in helping others, was taken aback. After verifying his account transaction, he realised his mistake. Next morning, he got an opportunity to trap the youth after the fraud accompanied by his friend again turned up before him for a similar help. Now alert Vishnu shared his wife’s SBI account details and the moment the amount was transferred he caught both of them with the help of locals and handed over to the police.
Later, the police recovered huge cash from the possession of frauds. Both the frauds, who were from Nawada in Bihar, also confessed their crime. Police produced them before court, from where they were forwarded to Birsa Munda Central Jail in judicial custody.
After police arrested the youths, Vishnu started attempting to get his account unfreezed. So far, the account has not been unfreezed.
Contacted Vishnu for his comment, he confirmed the incident saying he relied on the youths as they used to reside in his locality and often came to the CSC for services and their dealings with him was also good.
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