Man duped of ₹10,000 at SBI ATM in Vatva after stranger sends fake Google Pay message

A 35-year-old factory worker from Jashodanagar was allegedly cheated of ₹10,000 by an unidentified man who posed as a fellow ATM user and tricked him with a fake Google Pay confirmation message at an SBI ATM kiosk in Vatva on Sunday morning.

According to the FIR lodged on Wednesday, the complainant, Gulabchand Avadhuprasad, a resident of  Jashodanagar, had gone to deposit cash into his and his wife’s bank accounts at the SBI ATM situated at GIDC Vatva Phase-1at around 10.15 am on November 23.

Gulabchand, who works at a glass bottle manufacturing company in Vatva and supports his family of four, told police that he first deposited ₹15,000 into his wife Neetu Devi’s State Bank of India account, followed by ₹10,000 into his own Punjab National Bank account.

While he was still inside the ATM kiosk, an unknown man aged between 35 and 40 years approached him and asked whether he used Google Pay. When Gulabchand confirmed, the man allegedly claimed that the ATM machine was not dispensing cash and requested ₹10,000 in cash, assuring he would immediately transfer the same amount via Google Pay.

The complainant said the man asked for his Google Pay number and then showed him a message on his mobile phone purportedly confirming a transfer of ₹10,000. Believing the message to be genuine, Gulabchand handed over ₹10,000 in cash.

However, Gulabchand had left his mobile phone at home. When he returned and checked it, he found no Google Pay transaction. Instead he got a notification of a link. He later learnt from the ATM security guard, was unrelated to any fund transfer and linked to fraudulent apps.

Realising he had been cheated, he rushed back to the SBI ATM and informed the security guard, who confirmed that he had been scammed.

In his complaint, Gulabchand stated that the unidentified man had knowingly misled him with a fake confirmation message and fraudulently taken his cash. He urged police to trace and take action against the culprit.

The Vatva GIDC Police have registered a case under cheating-related provisions.

Officials at the GIDC Vatva Police Station said efforts are under way to identify the accused through CCTV footage from the ATM premises and nearby areas.

Further investigation is ongoing.