A cyber cheating case registered at the Tirupati East police station revealed how an NRI was duped by an online frauster, posing as an officer of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD).

The NRI lost ₹37,000, which was extracted from him as a donation for TTD, an independent trust that manages various temples, including the Tirumala Venkateswara Temple in Andhra Pradesh.

The fraudster had apparently created a fake email account resembling that of an officer from TTD. A mail was sent to NRI Venkata Prasad, seeking urgent donation for a proposed event by TTD in South Africa.

Prasad quickly transferred the money to the fraudster’s account. As no receipt for the donation was sent to him, Prasad suspected foul play and filed a complaint with the police. – editor@nrifocus.com