Ahmedabad: Nikol Textile Merchant Loses ₹5.19 Lakh In Cyber Fraud After Opening Fake Bank Of India APK
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
A 65-year-old textile businessman from Nikol lost ₹5.19 lakh after allegedly downloading a malicious APK file sent through WhatsApp under the pretext of updating his PAN card details for his Bank of India account.
The fraudster allegedly gained access to the merchant's mobile phone after he opened the file, following which ₹5.19 lakh was withdrawn from his bank account through five separate transactions. The victim subsequently approached the cybercrime helpline and lodged a complaint with the Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Police.
Fraudster Sends Fake ‘BOI PAN Card Update’ File
The victim, Khushalsingh Khemsingh Rajput (65), lives at Bhaktiraj Bungalows in Nikol and runs an industrial textile business, Deepak Textiles, in Krishnanagar.
According to the complaint, Rajput received a WhatsApp message from an unknown number on June 3, 2026. The message contained an APK file named ‘BOI PAN CARD UPDATE.apk’.
Believing the message to be from Bank of India, Rajput opened the file with assistance from his cousin, Uttamsingh, and entered the details requested in the form that appeared on his phone.
₹5.19 Lakh Withdrawn In Five Transactions
After the APK was downloaded, the fraudster allegedly gained control of Rajput's mobile phone.
The following afternoon, on June 4, Rajput received a message informing him that ₹5 lakh had been debited from his account.
He immediately went to the Bank of India branch in Nikol, where he learned that the money had been transferred through IMPS.
A subsequent examination of the account showed that a total of ₹5.19 lakh had been withdrawn through five transactions on the same day. One transaction involved ₹5 lakh, while four other transactions accounted for the remaining amount.
Cyber Crime Police Begin Investigation
After discovering the fraud, Rajput reported the matter through the cybercrime helpline 1930.
He later approached the Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Police Station and filed a complaint against the person operating the unknown mobile number.
Police have registered a case against the suspected mobile number holder as well as the account holders who allegedly received the stolen funds.
Investigators are now tracing the bank transactions, beneficiary accounts, mobile number and other digital trails to identify those involved in the fraud.
