KOTTAYAM: Police arrested a Kasaragod native for swindling Rs 1.5 crore from a youngster through a fake online trading site. Rashid (29), a native of Perumbala in Kasaragod was arrested by Kottayam East Police on Wednesday. Rashid extorted almost Rs 1.25 crore between June and September from a Kanjikuzhy native who fell for the fraud.

Rashid befriended the youngster through a fake Facebook ID and took note of the youngster's obsession with trading. Rashid later created a bogus website akin to the famous foreign trading app ‘Olymp Trade’. Meanwhile, the youngster fell for the trap just by having a glimpse at the website which was deftly made to have a semblance of the famous foreign trading site.

Rs. 1,24,19,150 was extorted from the youngster, with a fake promise of returning a monthly bonus of 15 per cent of the invested amount. The youngster soon found the fraud after Rashid delayed the monthly bonus payment.

Following the complaint, a case was registered and Rashid was arrested. The investigation team found that a similar fraud was committed in Bangalore. The investigation was led by SHO P S Shiju. The accused was produced in court and remanded.