MUMBAI, Nov. 6 -- A 76-year-old retired public sector employee from Borivali was duped of Rs.2.82 crore after she came across a deepfake video of finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman urging senior citizens to invest in gold, silver, stocks, commodities and bonds for lucrative returns. Believing the video to be true, the woman clicked on the related link which connected her with frauds who claimed they represented an international share trading platform. Based on their instructions, she transferred Rs.2.82 crore to them via 20 online transactions between March 9 and September 29, then realised she had been defrauded and approached the police, officers familiar with the matter told Hindustan Times. According to the North Region Cyber police, the complainant came across the deepfake video on a social media platform in February 2026. After she clicked on the link accompanying the video, she received a call from an international number, with the caller claiming to be an executive with an international share trading platform in Romania. The caller directed her to a purported accounts manager, who convinced her to start investing through their Telegram-based application. "To gain the woman's trust, the accused initially showed fabricated profits on a simulated trading dashboard and remitted Rs.1.27 lakh back to her account. They convinced her to invest more for better returns, citing geopolitical tensions between the US and Iran," an officer said, requesting anonymity. Between March 9 and September 29, the complainant transferred Rs.2.82 crore from her accounts with nationalised banks to multiple third-party bank accounts, whose details the frauds provided via Telegram, the officer said. "Subsequently, her virtual trading account showed considerable profits, but when she attempted to withdraw her principal and accumulated returns, the frauds demanded additional investments for an upcoming IPO and refused to refund her money," the police officer. When the 76-year-old expressed her inability to invest more, the frauds suggested she obtain a loan and assured her of reaping handsome profits. The woman, however, discussed the matter with her son who told her that she had been cheated. So she called the cyber helpline (1930) and was directed to report the fraud to the North Region Cyber police. Based on her complaint, a case has been registered against unidentified persons for cheating, cheating by personation, forgery and criminal conspiracy....