(Representative image)

BENGALURU: More than 200 investors from Karnataka have complained to cybercops that they were collectively defrauded of nearly Rs 2 crore from an app – named after US President Donald Trump, but with his AI-generated videos and photos – in the past 5-6 months.Unidentified fraudsters pulled off the scam through an app – ‘Trump Hotel Rental’, now taken down – by urging investors to deposit money for huge returns in short term, promising more than 100% profits in some cases. Police claimed the scam took more than 800 investors for a ride, adding some had invested upwards of Rs 10 lakh hoping quick returns. Cases have been filed at police stations in Bengaluru, Tumakuru, Mangaluru, Hubballi, Dharwad, Kalaburgi, Shivamogga, Ballari, Bidar, and Haveri.Authorities initiated investigations based on complaints. SR Ganachari, circle police inspector of CEN (Cybercrime, Economic offences, Narcotics), said ads for the now-defunct app made promises of substantial returns, remote-work opportunities and investment prospects.Sources said a dashboard on the app would list the earnings on an investment, and this was used as a bait to attract more investments. The police officer said, “Each completed task (assigned to an invester) appeared to increase their ‘earnings’ on the app dashboard, but the money was never real.A total of 15 cases have been registered in Haveri district. Many victims lost money in the same scheme, but they have not come forward to file a complaint.”A lawyer lost nearly Rs 6 lakh from January 25 and April 4 this year. Another victim described receiving promotional material for ‘Trump Hotel Rental’, which led them to download an application. The process involved completing forms and providing bank account details as instructed by the fraudsters.The victim’s complaint stated: “I was paid Rs 30 every day, and I was allowed to withdraw it after the total earnings crossed Rs 300. As the money was being paid on time and I could withdraw it, they started asking me to invest more. It started with Rs 5,000 and ended at Rs 1,00,000. Finally, they asked me to pay taxes to withdraw the money. But, they did not return it.”