Bengaluru: While social media helps us connect with several people, no matter where they are located at the snap of a finger, it has become necessary to exercise caution before trusting people befriended on the net as the platform has also proved to be blessing in disguise for conmen who are on the lookout for gullible persons they can dupe in order to make some easy money.

In a similar case, a woman from Bengaluru was duped of Rs 7.5 lakhs by a man she had befriended on Facebook.

The victim Mahalakshmi R, resident of Kumaraswamy Layout had reportedly befriended a man named Williams Morgan over the Facebook. Over course of time the two exchanged phone numbers and started chatting via Whatsapp too. Meanwhile, Morgan informed her that he had sent her a gift valuing upto 30,000 Pounds Sterling (Rs 27.77 lakh).

A few days later, on March 26 Mahalakshmi, who was eagerly awaiting the gift received a call from a woman claiming to be from the Delhi customs department. She informed Mahalakshmi that they had received a parcel for her and she would need to pay a sum of Rs 7.5 lacs inorder to receive the gift.

Mahalakshmi is said to have deposited the said amount into the bank account number given by the lady but the expected gift was not delivered to her. Thereafter she tried to get in touch with Morgan, but found that his phone too had been switched off.

On realising that she had become a victim of cyber crime, Mahalakshmi approached the police to file a complaint.

The cyber-crime police have registered an FIR against Williams Morgan in this regard.