A web series about cybercrime has allegedly inspired a real-life con. Yes, we are talking about Pritam and Pedro here, which was released a couple of months ago. The series, produced by Rajkumar Hirani and starring Vir Hirani, Arshad Warsi, and Vikrant Massey, has been praised for its humour, writing and message. Ironically, one viewer allegedly decided to use its methods outside the screen.
What happened is that a Gurugram youth has been accused of using a plot similar to Vikrant Massey’s antagonist in the series to cheat a student of Rs. 24.60 lakh. Alok K reportedly posed as a student counsellor and met a 21-year-old MBA Finance student enrolled in a distance-learning programme at a reputed management institute.
The two met at a Juhu café, where Alok helped the student complete his admission formalities and gained his trust. Months later, during an online examination, an alert claimed that copying had been detected on the student’s device.
The alert appeared again on the final day, after which the application crashed. Alok allegedly threatened the student with debarment, blacklisting and future admission problems. Later, he offered to resolve the matter in exchange for money and promised a refund if he failed.
The student transferred Rs. 24.60 lakh in installments, but received only Rs. 1.15 lakh back. Even after the student passed the exam, Alok allegedly continued demanding money. The student eventually informed his parents and filed a complaint at Bangur Nagar police station.
Police traced Alok through phone records and the money trail before arresting him in Gurugram on September 11. Investigators said he had previously worked at a call centre contracted by the institute and obtained the student’s number from its database. Two mobile phones were seized.
During questioning, Alok allegedly admitted being inspired by Pritam And Pedro and planning to use social engineering and impersonation for the fraud.
