Vizag Tech Worker Duped of ₹20 Lakh in Cryptocurrency Scam

A software professional in Vizag city, India, has lost ₹20 lakh to an online investment scam involving cryptocurrency. The victim, a 28-year-old, was contacted by a woman named Khushi via WhatsApp, who claimed to be a finance manager at Thornston and Ross. She promised unusually high returns on investments through the platform www.netobit.com and convinced the victim to invest ₹60,000 in August 2026.

The platform showed a profit of ₹4,000, which induced the victim to invest more money, promising higher profits. The victim invested ₹20 lakh in four instalments of ₹5 lakh each through the OnRamp application. The Indian rupees were converted into Tether (USDT), a cryptocurrency designed to mirror the value of the US dollar, and transferred through a Trust Wallet address to the Netobit.com website.

After multiple trades, the amount displayed on the platform increased to about ₹58 lakh, but the victim was unable to withdraw the funds due to a processing fee of 15% of the existing balance, amounting to approximately ₹9 lakh. The victim realized the platform was fraudulent and lodged a complaint on the cybercrime portal, leading to a case being registered under relevant provisions pertaining to cheating, identity theft, and cheating by personation using a communication device.