Hyderabad, March 20 -- At least three people were duped of Rs 30 lakh in an investment fraud in Hyderabad via WhatsApp and Telegram recently.

According to the Cyberabad cybercrime unit, in April 2025, the 39-year-old complainant was lured into joining an investment platform after receiving a link on Telegram. After being persuaded, the complainant joined the platform in the name of sand paper company.

The accused were identified as Sulalit Bishwas and Arpan, both from Kolkata, along with Basavaraj Hirole and Sikandar of Karnataka, and Venkata Bhupati Raju and Venkata Narasimha Rao Meda of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

All of them were promoters of the scheme. "The platform, accessed through the Telegram channel Pluto Project, promised ...