‘Digital arrest’ fraud: 60-year-old Bengaluru woman duped of over Rs 1 crore

Bengaluru: In a case of "digital arrest" fraud, a 60-year-old retired woman was duped of Rs 1.2 crore by cybercriminals posing as officials of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), Mumbai crime branch, and CBI.According to a complaint filed by the Halasuru resident, her ordeal began on Jan 31, when she received a WhatsApp call from a man claiming to be a Delhi-based TRAI officer. The fraudster told her that a SIM card was purchased using her Aadhaar card in Mumbai and alleged that it was used to send illegal advertisements and harassing messages. He told her that a complaint was registered against her.
The fake TRAI officer then told the woman that he was transferring the call to a Mumbai crime branch officer. The second fraudster told the woman that a case of money laundering linked to Jet Airways founder Naresh Goyal had been registered against her. He claimed that Goyal was arrested in a money laundering case, and around 100 debit cards were seized from him. Among them, one debit card belonged to her. The account was opened in her name using her Aadhaar card and the SIM card, he reportedly said.She then received calls from multiple numbers, and the callers claimed to be CBI officials. They allegedly shared her personal details to make her believe they were genuine and told her that she was under "digital arrest." They threatened to arrest her and her family members if she revealed the call to anyone.On the pretext of a virtual investigation, the fraudsters told her that they would help her as she appeared innocent. They told her they needed to verify her bank accounts and secure her funds. Citing the Reserve Bank of India, the fraudsters convinced her that her money needed to be transferred to designated accounts for scrutiny. She was allegedly told that once the verification was completed and the money was transferred to an RBI-linked account, the entire amount would be returned within six hours.Believing their claim, the woman transferred funds between Feb 6 and Feb 12 to multiple bank accounts provided by the accused. In total, she transferred Rs 1.2 crore, and when the money was not returned, she realised that she had been cheated. She discussed her ordeal with her family members and lodged a complaint.A senior police officer said efforts were on to recover the woman's money. —-———-———BlurbThe fraudsters told the woman that Aadhaar details were used for money laundering and convinced her to transfer her funds to multiple accounts for verification. She obliged and realised she was cheated only when her money as not returned as promised