Lucknow: A resident of Rajajipuram was allegedly duped of over ₹1.60 crore by fraudsters posing as representatives of an investment firm and luring him into fake stock trading schemes through WhatsApp groups.According to the FIR lodged at the cyber crime police station, complainant Mahendra Pandey (35), a resident of E-1489, Rajajipuram, alleged that between Feb 10 and Mar 13, he was added to two different WhatsApp groups named “Elite Core 231” and “1V1 Advanced Group (20)”, where he was persuaded to invest in shares. under the name of Almondz Global Securities Ltd.He said that he was asked to transfer a total of Rs 1,60,39,737 in multiple bank accounts, and was assured of high returns.A group admin identified as Sejal Gaba repeatedly assured him of high returns and guided him to transfer money to multiple bank accounts. Trusting the claims, he transferred a total of ₹1,60,39,737 through multiple transactions across banks including multiple banks.However, the fraud came to light when the victim tried contacting other group members—around 150 individuals—but found all numbers either switched off or unresponsive. Upon demanding withdrawal of his funds, he was allegedly asked to pay an additional 20% “service charge” to release profits. When he expressed inability to pay, the accused stopped all communication with him.Realizing he had been cheated, the victim approached the police. Based on his written complaint an FIR has been registered under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Information Technology Act 2000, including provisions related to cheating, impersonation, and online fraud.Police officials confirmed that the accused remain unidentified and an investigation is underway to trace the cyber fraud network and recover the siphoned funds.