Keonjhar, Dec 5: In a major cyber fraud case, unidentified cybercriminals allegedly siphoned off Rs 10.50 lakh and Rs 10.67 lakh from the savings accounts of two residents of the Barbil area in Keonjhar district, a source said on Friday.

The victims were identified as Chandresh Sawaliya of ward number-9 and Hardev Singh from Mrinal Colony under Barbil Municipality. According to reports, Rs 10,50,000 was withdrawn from Sawaliya’s accounts, while Rs 10,67,000 was fraudulently debited from Singh’s fixed deposit account.

Sources said Sawaliya fell victim after receiving a message asking him to send Rs 10 via PhonePe for address renewal. Believing it to be genuine, he followed the instructions. His phone was subsequently hacked, and through a nine-step process, the fraudsters transferred Rs 7 lakh from his IndusInd Bank account and Rs 3.5 lakh from his HDFC Bank account.

In Singh’s case, he reportedly received an SMS from an unknown number on November 30. After opening the message and putting his phone aside, he discovered minutes later that Rs 10.67 lakh had been drained from his IndusInd Bank fixed deposit account.

Following the incidents, both victims lodged formal complaints at the Barbil police station. Police have registered cases and launched an investigation. Cyber experts are analysing transaction trails to identify the culprits.

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Police have urged citizens to exercise caution while using digital banking services and warned against clicking unknown links, sharing OTPs or responding to suspicious messages. Further investigation is underway.

This story is compiled by Krishna P Hota.