The victim, identified as Shakthivel E, was first contacted via Instagram and subsequently invited into a Telegram group led by someone calling himself “Ashutosh Sharma”, who marketed a one-week trading scheme in the Ethereum/USD pair with a 15 percent commission on earnings.
He reported that his trading wallet eventually displayed 138,687.22 USDT but when he attempted to withdraw the funds the operators claimed his bank-details were incorrect and demanded additional fees for tax, currency conversion and late payments.
Transfers Total ₹42.62 Lakh And No Withdrawal
Between July 3 and August 1 the victim made multiple payments to bank accounts and UPI IDs linked to the alleged fraudsters, ultimately totaling ₹42,62,081. None of the purported earnings could be withdrawn.
Authorities in Bengaluru have registered a First Information Report (FIR) on November 14 and begun verifying wallet addresses, mobile numbers and the domain of the trading portal referenced in the complaint.
Telegram And Crypto-Group Scams
The case mirrors a broader pattern of fraud where scammers use Telegram or WhatsApp groups to lure investors with initial small returns, build trust, then lock them into bigger payments under false promises of large gains.
Academic research into Telegram-based cyber-criminal channels found that such groups often migrate rapidly, share links to unregulated services and rely on social-engineering to manipulate victims.
In India the regulatory architecture around crypto-trading advisory groups remains fragmented, making it harder for victims to recover funds once transferred.
Legal experts note that the promise of “guaranteed returns” in unlicensed platforms remains a red-flag that investors often ignore.
Why This Loss Means
The victim’s loss of over ₹42.6 lakh stands out because it came through a curated social-media path rather than an obvious scam website. It shows how traders can be drawn into what appears to be legitimate “guidance groups” and then funnelled into high-risk exposures.
For law enforcement the case highlights the challenge of tracing multiple account transfers, linking real-world identities to crypto wallets and navigating jurisdictional limits when the platform is offshore.
For everyday investors this incident highlights the complexity of exit barriers: even when money shows in a wallet, withdrawal may be blocked by demands for additional payments, rendering the initial “return” illusionary.
Conclusion
Investigators will publish whether they manage to freeze bank or UPI accounts tied to the fraud and track wallet flows on the blockchain for clarity.
Regulators may issue advisories or tighten guidance around crypto-investment groups promoted on social platforms.
Financial-services firms and trading-app operators might increase warnings and build detection frameworks for users who are asked to join Telegram/WhatsApp groups or pay “unlock fees”.
If the law-enforcement outcome is visible, the case may act as a deterrent, but if it stalls with little recovery, it could embolden more scams of this kind.
