Lucknow: A resident of Rajajipuram, identified as Sharad Mishra, filed a police complaint after being allegedly defrauded of Rs11,77,615 in a sophisticated ‘work-from-home’ cyber racket.According to the complaint, the ordeal began on Jan 6, when Mishra received a WhatsApp message from an unknown number offering a part-time job. Initially, he was asked to perform simple tasks, such as taking screenshots of products on the Amazon website. The victim was lured into a sense of security after receiving small payments for these initial tasks.The fraudsters then moved the communication to Telegram, where Mishra was introduced to a handle named @Amazon Support78. He was subsequently instructed by another individual, using the handle @verma96341, to “invest” money on a fraudulent website masked as a cryptocurrency platform.Between Jan 7 and Jan 8, the victim was coerced into making multiple high-value transfers to various UPI IDs and bank accounts. The complaint lists a series of transactions totalling Rs5,11,984 from his savings accounts and Rs6,65,630 via various credit cards.When Mishra attempted to withdraw his funds, the scammers blocked the request, demanding further “investments” to release the previous balance. The victim alleged that he was even threatened over the phone when he refused to pay more.Following the realisation that he was duped, Mishra reported the matter to the Cyber Helpline (1930) on Jan 8. Multiple complaint numbers were generated, and a formal FIR was lodged (Case 108/2026). The victim appealed to the deputy commissioner of police (crime) for the recovery of his hard-earned money and the arrest of the perpetrators.
