Hisar, October 18, 2026: A 32-year-old Indian Army jawan posted at the Hisar Military Cantonment has been defrauded of approximately ₹7 lakh by cyber criminals. The accused first established contact through a matrimonial application under the pretext of marriage and subsequently induced the soldier to invest money through a fake trading application.
The victim, identified as Dhanraj and a native of Tamil Nadu, downloaded the Sangam matrimonial application about one-and-a-half months earlier while searching for a life partner. He subsequently received a WhatsApp message from a foreign number. The caller introduced herself as Saranya and claimed to reside in Greenwich, United Kingdom. She stated that her father had passed away and that her maternal uncle was engaged in trading activities in the UK.
Conversations progressed, including arranged conference calls involving the families of both sides, after which the parties reportedly agreed to marriage. Dhanraj indicated that he intended to proceed on leave on November 2 to travel to Chennai for finalising the wedding arrangements. Thereafter, Saranya proposed that they jointly undertake trading to meet the substantial expenses associated with the wedding.
She shared a link that directed the jawan to a purported investment application named Luno Exchange and added him to a WhatsApp group titled “Luno Team -3020,” administered by an individual identified as Peter Williams. Small initial investments of ₹10,000 and ₹20,000 were made, and limited withdrawals of displayed profits were permitted, thereby establishing credibility. Between September 10 and September 21, Dhanraj transferred ₹3,31,760 from his own bank account and approximately ₹3 lakh from the account of a fellow soldier, Sarvesh Barn, amounting to a total of approximately ₹7 lakh. The application displayed a balance of 53,093 USDT, equivalent to roughly ₹50.43 lakh.
When Dhanraj attempted to withdraw the accumulated amount, the funds were not released. Further demands for additional money were made by Saranya and the group administrator. Realising that he had been defrauded, he lodged a complaint through the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP). The matter was initially registered at the Cyber Crime Police Station in Panchkula and subsequently transferred to the Cyber Police Station in Sector 14, Hisar.
An FIR has been registered against unknown accused persons under Sections 318(4) (cheating) and 61 (criminal conspiracy) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Investigating officer Sanjay Kumar has confirmed the registration of the case, and the investigation is underway.
The case underscores the continued risk of sophisticated cyber frauds that combine matrimonial pretexts with unverified investment applications to target serving personnel. Police have advised the public, including members of the armed forces, to exercise caution while interacting with unknown individuals on matrimonial platforms and investment applications.
