Assam: Cyber criminal victimizes cancer patient in Lakhimpur

LAKHIMPUR: With the advancement of technology, recent cases of cyber crime in the society has increased alarmingly. During the current days, many crimes like kidnapping, fraud, hacking, data theft are being committed with the help of internet. The society and many individuals are significantly impacted by cybercrime at present in terms of financial losses, business interruptions, dangers to digital transformation, breaches of privacy and data security, as well as difficulties with law enforcement and justice. Though the governments of India and Assam have initiated various steps to curb the cyber crimes, the criminal concerned have continued their notorious operations by looting even the poor fellows, patient of critical disease with financial fraudulence.

Of late, such a case has come to light in Lakhimpur district, where a cyber criminal has victimized a poor cancer patient and was potent enough to cheat him to credit an amount of Rs16,000. The cancer patient has been identified as Upen Saikia, aged around 40 years, an inhabitant of Salal Gaon under Panigaon Police Station of the district. He hails from a poverty-stricken family and the disease he has been suffering from was detected around two years ago. Since then he has been undergoing treatment at Guwahati and Lakhimpur Cancer Centre. His family has currently exhausted all the savings while managing treatment expenses for him. Of late, the family was compelled to appeal to the public to help the poor cancer patient and the cyber criminals took advantage of it.

Regarding the case, Upen Saikia informed this correspondent that on November 20, a call came to him from a mobile number 9435006137, in which the caller introduced himself to be a government officer dealing with Ayushman Card. The caller informed Upen Saikia that an amount of Rs. 5,00,000 would be released to him under Ayushman Card, so that he could treat his ailment. At first, the family did not pay much importance to the call. But the caller started to lure and harass the patient by making frequent calls. The caller managed to intimidate the family by saying that he would lose his job if he had not completed the process to release the amount within the day and the patient would never get any aid under Ayushman Card to treat his ailment. At this, the patient agreed with the caller, who then told him to submit his medical documents through WhatsApp and pay some money to complete the process. The caller gave the patient a scanner for the payment and asked him to pay for ‘various reasons’ by making consecutive calls. Then the patient paid a total of Rs. 16,000 to the caller’s wallet in different amounts after he had asked for it by making calls to him several times. The patient’s family members informed that they deposited that amount of money with the financial help extended by the benevolent people, after their appeal, to take him to Guwahati for advanced treatment. Later, the wallet was identified to be of one Jyotismita Deka. Though the patient paid the caller the amount he had asked for, no money had been credited to the patient’s bank account in the name of Ayushman Card till date.

Now the patient’s family has realized that they have been cheated and informed the matter to police. The patient’s family members filed a complaint at Panigaon Police Station regarding the case and urged Lakhimpur district administration, Police Department as well as DGP, Chief Minister to take action against the cyber criminal. The local public also urged the Chief Minister and the DGP to provide justice to the poor family.

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