PUNE: A 61-year-old medical practitioner from Nigdi was duped of Rs 7.90 lakh by at least three persons posing as officials from the income tax department.The suspects somehow managed to convince the doctor that an investment of Rs 3.10 lakh made by his father about 25 years ago had yielded handsome returns. The unsuspecting doctor, then, went on transferring various amounts of money to eight bank accounts as and when demanded by the suspects. After transferring Rs 7.90 lakh since April, the doctor finally realised that he had been duped and approached the Nigdi police on Sunday to lodge a complaint.Inspector Shankar Autade told TOI that the complainant’s father worked in a government establishment and had passed away about 25 years ago. A woman posing as an inspector from the income tax department contacted the doctor in April and told him that his father had invested Rs 3.10 lakh in general pension fund. “She also told him that the amount was deposited with the pension fund regulatory authority,” Autade added.The woman told the doctor that he would get back the amount along with handsome interest accrued over the years. She also promised him to help him in securing the entire amount. “However, when the complainant asked his mother about the investment made by his father, she told him she wasn’t aware of any such investment,” Autade said.Later, another lady posing as an income tax official contacted the complainant and gave him the same information after which the latter decided to begin the process. “Initially, the suspects told him to transfer some amount for renewal of his father’s pension fund account,” Autade said.After some days, a man posing as an income tax official contacted the medical practitioner and told him to transfer some amount in order to cancel the old account. “The doctor went on transferring money as and when he was told to do so by the suspects. In five months, he had transferred Rs 7.90 lakh through online transactions to eight different bank accounts which he was told belonged to the income tax department,” Autade said.Autade said the doctor became suspicious when there was no response from the income tax department and went to a bank to check the name of the account holder. “When he came to know that the account was in the name of a woman, he came to us and lodged the complaint,” Autade added.A case has been registered under sections 419 and 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code and relevant sections of the Information and Technology Act. “Prima facie probe revealed that the money was transferred to bank accounts located in Delhi, Noida and Lucknow,” Autade said.

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