The real estate developer approached the police after realising he has been duped (Representational)
A real estate developer in Pune has allegedly been duped to the tune of Rs 38.50 lakh by online fraudsters under the pretext of procuring a particular oil used for developing a vaccine in the US, police said on Sunday.
The complainant lost the money in 14 different transactions he made between February and April this year, police said.
As per the complaint, he was allegedly contact by a woman on a social networking site who claimed that she was working with a California-based firm involved in the development of a vaccine.
"She told him that their laboratory needed a particular oil which is found only in India and asked the real estate developer to help them procure the same and earn money in the process," the officer said.
The fraudsters gave the man the contact number of a person who was involved in the trade of that particular item in India, they said.
"Later the complainant was asked to pay Rs 38.5 lakh in 14 different transactions between February and April," he said, adding that the real estate developer have never met anyone in person.
The man approached the police after realising that he has been duped.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)