A couple from Maharashtra's Thane city was allegedly cheated of Rs 29.38 lakh by cyber fraudsters who promised high returns through various online tasks, police said on Friday.
According to police, the fraud occurred between December 13, 2025, and August 8, 2026, when the victims, residents of the Naupada area, were contacted by unknown persons posing as representatives of "NTL Media Limited", as per PTI.
Fraudsters promise couple lucrative returns
Officials, while asserting about the incident, said that the fraudsters allegedly promised the couple lucrative returns after completing designated tasks online.
They persuaded the couple to register and download the "NTL App", on which they were assigned tasks that required them to deposit money into various bank accounts and through UPI transfers, an official said.
Furthermore, the couple was asked to invest more money to unlock their earnings. But when they attempted to withdraw funds, the operators cited technical excuses, refused to release the money, and demanded additional payments.
The Naupada police on Wednesday registered a case under section 318(4)(cheating) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and relevant provisions of the IT Act, the official said, adding that a probe is underway.
Two female brokers among three arrested in Ulhasnagar
In a separate incident, police have busted a prostitution racket allegedly being operated from a house in Ulhasnagar in Maharashtra’s Thane district and arrested three people, including two female brokers, officials said on Thursday.
The Anti-Human Trafficking Cell of the Thane Police Crime Branch raided the house in Pachpandav Colony on Tuesday evening and rescued two women, news agency PTI reported, quoting officials.
Acting on a tip-off, a special police team laid a trap and raided the premises around 6.30 pm. The accused allegedly lured vulnerable women into prostitution by promising them money, while one of the female accused allegedly provided her residence to run the racket.
A case was registered against the three accused at Vitthalwadi Police Station on August 12 under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, PTI reported.
Thane Police bust prostitution racket, woman broker held
In a separate incident last week, Thane Police in Maharashtra busted an alleged prostitution racket operating at a hotel in the city, arresting a woman broker and rescuing four women, officials said.
The operation was carried out at a hotel located on Pokhran Road in Thane West.
According to Madan Ballal, Assistant Commissioner of Police (Crime), the accused allegedly lured financially distressed women with false promises before bringing them to the hotel and forcing them into commercial sex work.
(With inputs from PTI)
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