Hyderabad : – Hyderabad Police nabbed three individuals for orchestrating a fraudulent scheme under the guise of selling Mahindra vehicles at discounted rates. The Cyber Crimes Police Station apprehended the suspects, identified as Tadi Naveen Kumar, Kancharla Madhu, and Srinivas Durga Prasad, all hailing from Rajahmundry, Andhra Pradesh.
The accused, posing as executives from Mahindra CIE Automotive Limited, duped their victim, V. Danie Ratnam, of over Rs 3.54 lakh. The perpetrators now face charges under sections 66 C and D of the Information Technology Act, along with sections 419 and 420 of the Indian Penal Code.
Police seized incriminating evidence during the arrests, which transpired following a complaint filed by Ratnam. According to the complainant, he received a call from an individual claiming to be G.S. Chandrasekhar, the General Manager (HR & Administration) at Mahindra CIE Automotive Limited. Chandrasekhar, posing as a former client of Ratnam’s security services, informed him of the need for security services at a new factory in Chittoor district, Andhra Pradesh.
As part of the ruse, Chandrasekhar also presented an opportunity for Ratnam to purchase brand new R&D and demo vehicles at discounted prices through the company’s annual auction. Trusting the credentials, Ratnam proceeded to book two Mahindra Bolero SLX vehicles, transferring Rs 3,54,236 to the provided account numbers between November 23 and 25.
Despite assurances of delivery by November 27, the vehicles never arrived. Attempts to contact Chandrasekhar proved futile as his mobile number was switched off. Further investigation revealed that the provided bank account belonged to an individual, leading Ratnam to realize he had fallen victim to a scam.
In light of this incident, police caution the public against trusting dubious offers of vehicles or mobile phones at reduced prices and advise skepticism towards unsolicited messages circulating through social media applications.
