Hyderabad retiree duped of Rs 8 lakh in ‘digital arrest’ scam

HYDERABAD: A 63-year-old retired govt employee from Hyderabad were duped of ₹8 lakh in a digital arrest scam. Cybercriminals threatened him with involvement in a money laundering case linked to a ₹66,000 crore fraud and extorted the money.

According to the police, five days ago, the victim received a call from a fraudster posing as a telecom officer, who claimed his mobile number would be disconnected due to a case against him at the Andheri police station.

The scammer then connected him to another fraudster impersonating a special officer from the CBI.

The fake CBI officer alleged that a bank account had been opened in the victim's name, linking him to a money laundering scam.

The criminals threatened to arrest both the victim and his wife unless they cooperated, police said. They placed the couple under digital arrest, forcing them to remain confined in a room for five hours.

They were coerced into transferring ₹8 lakh to various accounts. The scam ended when the victim became suspicious after demands for additional transfers.