NAGPUR: A 39-year-old tile salesman from Zingabai Takli was allegedly cheated of ₹95,000 after receiving fraudulent mobile notifications impersonating the Police Cyber Crime Unit, prompting him to check his Google Pay account.

According to the complaint filed at Mankapur Police Station, the victim, identified as Mohammad Shafiq (39), a resident of the area near Geetanjali Garden in Zingabai Takli, received a notification on his mobile phone on October 1, claiming that ₹45,000 had been credited to his UPI-linked bank account from a suspicious account. The notification instructed him to open Google Pay and check his account balance.

The complainant reportedly received similar notifications several times but initially ignored them. On October 2, while he was at home, he again began receiving such notifications, this time mentioning an amount of ₹5,000.

After reaching his workplace, his mobile phone screen suddenly went blank and the device entered update mode. Despite repeated attempts, he could not switch it on.

When he subsequently checked his bank account balance, he discovered that ₹95,000 had been transferred without his consent to a UPI ID registered in the name of Akash Nagraj.

Realising that he had fallen victim to cyber fraud, Shafiq approached the police. Based on his complaint, Mankapur police registered a case under Section 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Sections 66(C) and 66(D) of the Information Technology Act on October 30.

Further investigation is underway.