Mumbai, December 15 :

An SMS fraud by two brothers here duped at least 50,000 people into losing Rs 250 million ($5.5 mn), police said.

Jayanand Nadar, 36, and Jayaraja Nadar, 28, put an ad in some Mumbai dailies: “Nothing is impossible. The word itself is I M Possible”. They then messaged random numbers, asking people interested in “earning Rs 10,000 a month to contact them”, said police. The SMS technology helped the brothers, who are now absconding, spin a scheme promising investors they could “get rich quickly”.

“In September 2006, the duo floated a company — SMS Media Pvt Ltd — and registered it. Attractive promos were inserted in some newspapers and magazines to lure investors,” said police inspector Ajendra Thakur.

The duo claimed to be working with a US-based company — Aropis Advertising Company — that wanted to market products through SMSs. Their modus operandi involved asking interested “subscribers” for Rs 500 or Rs 650.