Pune, 1st July 2025: In two separate incidents reported in Pune, a senior woman doctor was tricked into installing a malicious app, leading to a cyber theft of ₹5 lakh, while in another case, two women posing as customers stole gold jewellery worth over ₹5.22 lakh from a jewellery shop in Kondhwa. Both cases are currently under police investigation.
The first incident took place in Karvenagar, where a 72-year-old doctor residing in Sahawas Society received a message claiming her gas bill was pending. The message warned that her gas connection would be disconnected if the bill was not paid. Soon after, she received a call from someone posing as an official from MNGL gas company’s complaint department.
The fraudster convinced the woman to download an APK file (a mobile application) that he claimed was necessary to resolve the issue. Once downloaded, the file allowed the cybercriminals to gain remote access to her phone, through which they obtained her banking details and transferred ₹5 lakh from her account. A complaint was lodged at Alankar Police Station, and Police Inspector Anil Mane is investigating the matter.
In a separate case, two women wearing burqas entered a well-known jewellery store in Kondhwa on the evening of June 22. Pretending to be interested in buying gold bangles, they asked the store employee to show them various designs. While the employee was distracted, the women cleverly replaced four real gold bangles with fake ones and left the shop unnoticed.
The stolen bangles were worth ₹5.22 lakh, and the theft was discovered shortly after the women left. A case has been registered at Kondhwa Police Station on June 29. The police are examining CCTV footage from the store to identify the accused. Authorities have also issued a warning urging citizens not to download unknown files or apps and to remain alert while dealing with strangers.
