Another Nigerians Fraud: They Sell Fake Herbal Seeds To Cure Cancer

Hyderabad: Cyber Crime Sleuths have busted a gang of Nigerians who have been duping gullible persons in the guise of vendors of Herbal seeds claiming to give commissions on the sale of those seeds.

The Herbal seeds are meant to produce cancer drugs which are used in the pharmaceutical industry.

Reportedly, three persons have been cheated including two from Telangana. One man lost to the tune of Rs 1.24 crore while another lost for Rs 26 lakh.

“The gang promised huge commission on sale of herbal seeds to US and UK-based pharma companies. The accused used phishing methods to communicate with the victims, to make them believe that the calls originated from pharma companies in the US and UK, which could be verified by a Google search," Deccan Chronicle quoted police official.

The modus operandi is that the fraudsters call victim to a specific locations and are asked to pay token amount for completing the seeds deal. Subsequently, the victims are asked to deposit the money in the accounts rented from local Indians.

A victim, Vishnu Vardhan Reddy, narrates his ordeal, "I received a friend request on Facebook from one of the gang members. After trying to befriend me, she claimed to be working for a pharma company and said she needed OTO herbal seeds. To confirm her claim, I called on the UK number given on the website. One of the gang members verified the claim. I lost around Rs 26 lakh."

According to sources, one accused has been held by the police.