Navi Mumbai residents lose over Rs 1.5 Cr in separate investment frauds, Cases registered

Navi Mumbai police have registered multiple cheating cases after residents were allegedly duped of substantial sums in separate investment scams, officials said on Sunday.

In the first case, a 44-year-old woman who runs an e-commerce business in Old Panvel was cheated of over Rs 43 lakh by a Dubai-based man. She reportedly came across an Instagram ad in 2023 offering a dealership in prayer mats and garments and began communicating with the accused through WhatsApp. Over several months, the man persuaded her to invest further in rental housing for bachelors and imported laptops, promising high returns. Between June 21, 2023, and February 5, 2024, she transferred Rs 43.41 lakh from her own and her family’s accounts. Despite repeated follow-ups, the accused neither returned the money nor delivered the promised profits. A case of cheating was registered on January 30, and police are investigating; no arrests have been made so far.

In a second case, a 75-year-old businessman from Vashi was allegedly cheated of Rs 1.08 crore in a share market investment scam. The victim clicked on a Facebook ad promising lucrative returns and was subsequently added to a WhatsApp group and directed to fraudulent websites to set up trading accounts. Between December 5, 2025, and January 6, 2026 , he transferred funds in 18 separate installments . The fraudsters initially showed fictitious profits exceeding Rs 4 crore, but when he attempted to withdraw the money, they demanded further payments as taxes and IPO fees. The businessman filed a complaint through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal , and the Navi Mumbai Cyber Police registered an FIR on January 29 against two unidentified persons under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Information Technology Act .

Police have urged residents to exercise caution while investing online and report any suspicious activity.