New Delhi: A woman’s attempt to buy jewellery through a social media advertisement turned into a cyber fraud, but a digital and financial investigation led police to the accused’s doorstep in Haryana.According to police, the complainant came across an advertisement for jewellery on social media in Feb and tried calling the number mentioned in the post. Though the call did not connect, she soon received a callback from another number.The caller, posing as a representative of the jewellery seller, shifted the conversation to another platform and allegedly convinced her to transfer money on the assurance that the jewellery would be delivered. However, the promised products never arrived.Police claimed the woman lost nearly Rs 1.2 lakh through multiple UPI transactions before realising she had been cheated. Based on her complaint, an FIR was registered at the cyber police station of central district under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.“During the investigation, our team analysed the social media account, digital footprints and financial transactions linked to the fraud,” said DCP (central) Rohit Rajbir Singh. “They found that most of the cheated amount had not been routed through conventional bank accounts but was instead used to clear outstanding dues on two credit cards.”Police said Rs 97,580 was settled against one credit card and the remaining Rs 19,395 against another, a strategy allegedly adopted to obscure the money trail.The investigation eventually led the cops to Hodal in Haryana’s Palwal district, where they arrested Ankit Thakur, 26. During interrogation, he allegedly disclosed that he used a SIM card linked to one of the credit cards to receive OTPs and facilitate fraudulent transactions.Police said he admitted to sharing the proceeds with his associate who is absconding. A mobile phone and an active SIM allegedly used in the offence have been seized.