Hisar Army Jawan Cheated of ₹7 Lakh in Matrimonial-cum-Trading App Fraud
Hisar, October 18, 2026: An Indian Army jawan posted at the Hisar Military Cantonment has reportedly lost nearly ₹7 lakh in a cyber fraud that began on a matrimonial app and later moved to a fake investment platform. The victim, Dhanraj, a 32-year-old native of Tamil Nadu, was allegedly lured into the scam by a woman who introduced herself as Saranya and claimed to be based in Greenwich, United Kingdom.
Dhanraj had downloaded the Sangam matrimonial application around one-and-a-half months ago while searching for a life partner. Soon after, he received a WhatsApp message from a foreign number. The woman on the other end said her father had died and claimed that her maternal uncle was involved in trading in the UK. What followed was a series of conversations, including conference calls between both families, after which the two sides reportedly agreed to the marriage.
According to the complaint, Dhanraj planned to take leave on November 2 and travel to Chennai to finalise wedding arrangements. At that stage, Saranya proposed that they start trading together so they could meet the large expenses linked to the wedding. She then shared a link to what was presented as an investment platform called Luno Exchange and added him to a WhatsApp group named “Luno Team -3020”, which was being administered by a person identified as Peter Williams.
The fraudsters initially built trust through small transactions. Dhanraj reportedly invested ₹10,000 and ₹20,000 in the beginning, and was allowed to make limited withdrawals of the displayed profits. This apparent success convinced him to continue. Between September 10 and September 21, he transferred ₹3,31,760 from his own bank account and about ₹3 lakh from the account of another soldier, Sarvesh Barn. In all, the amount siphoned off from him came to roughly ₹7 lakh.
The application showed a balance of 53,093 USDT, which is equivalent to about ₹50.43 lakh. However, when Dhanraj tried to withdraw the money, the funds were not released. Instead, he was allegedly pressed for more money by Saranya and the group administrator.
After realising that he had been cheated, Dhanraj approached the authorities through the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP). The complaint was first registered at the Cyber Crime Police Station in Panchkula and later transferred to the Cyber Police Station in Sector 14, Hisar.
Police have registered an FIR against unknown persons under Sections 318(4) for cheating and 61 for criminal conspiracy of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Investigating officer Sanjay Kumar has confirmed the registration of the case, and the probe is in progress.
The case is the latest example of cyber criminals using matrimonial platforms to gain trust before steering victims toward fake trading applications. Police have advised the public, including serving members of the armed forces, to remain cautious while interacting with unknown people on matrimonial apps and while investing through unverified platforms.
