Cheated doctor spreads cyber education

HYDERABAD: Dr Chandana (name changed), a Hyderabad-born woman who claims to have been duped of $2.50 lakh in a matter of days, is on a mission to raise awareness among women about cyber crooks who prey on women.

Dr Chandana, a practising physician in Texas, stated that she was duped by Ahmad Mohammed Salem, an Israeli who claimed to be a surgeon in the UK, and that he had cheated several women in India and other parts of the world and looted large sums of money from them.

During the Covid-induced lockdown, Chandana said she received a friend request on Facebook from someone claiming to be a doctor. They gradually became friends, and he began demanding money from her for a variety of reasons.

She transferred money at his request to various accounts in India, which he informed were of his friends and relatives. He threatened to commit suicide and blocked her when she demanded her money, Dr Chandana claimed. "When I filed a complaint with the police in the United States, the funds from two accounts were transferred to my account. But I later discovered that he is a professional cheat who has been looking for women all over the world. I discovered that he has over 300 Facebook accounts with various names,” she claimed.

She said she also discovered that there are victims in various parts of India. "When I started a campaign on Facebook, they approached me. I want to spread awareness among women to prevent them from falling in his trap,” the doctor said. Dr Chandana also stated that she would file a complaint with the Hyderabad cybercrime police.