Daijiworld Media Network – Udupi (JD)

Udupi, Oct 8: Two senior citizens in Udupi district were targeted by fraudsters posing as helpers during ATM transactions, resulting in significant financial losses in two separate incidents.

In the first incident, Cheennappa (73), a resident of Kodi village, became a victim of ATM fraud on October 4, at around 10:30 AM. While withdrawing Rs 1,000 from a Karnataka Bank ATM in Sasthana, Pandeshwara village, an unknown man entered the ATM and, pretending to assist, discreetly swapped Cheennappa’s ATM card.

Cheennappa only discovered the fraud on October 7, when he attempted another withdrawal and found his account empty. Upon inquiry, it was revealed that the fraudster had withdrawn Rs 99,000 from his account between October 4 and October 6 at various locations including Saligrama, Shivamogga, Kargal, and Gokarna. A case has been registered at the Kota police station.

In another incident, Jagadish Rao (69), a resident of Kelarkalbettu village, was defrauded on October 6, 2024. After withdrawing Rs 10,000 from a State Bank of India ATM in Santhekatte, an individual behind him pretended to offer help and switched Rao's ATM card without his knowledge.

Later, Rao received several SMS alerts indicating withdrawals totalling Rs 2,29,998. On checking, he realized his ATM card had been swapped. The fraudster managed to steal Rs 2,40,000 from his account. Only Rs 32,192 remained, with an unexplained discrepancy of Rs 10,252.

Both incidents highlight the growing issue of ATM fraud in the region. Authorities are urging the public to be cautious when using ATMs and to report any suspicious behaviour immediately.