Retd defence official loses 26L in digital arrest scam

Pune: A 66-year-old retired defence personnel from Dhanori fell prey to cyber fraudsters who allegedly posed as officers of the Mumbai crime branch and duped him of Rs 26.1 lakh by threatening him with arrest in a fake money laundering case. The Vishrantwadi police registered an FIR on Wednesday after the victim first approached the Pune cybercrime police with a complaint application.
According to an officer, the fraud began on Feb 11 when the victim received a video call from a man claiming to be a Mumbai crime branch official. The crook claimed that the victim had 20 cases of cheating and threatening people with the Mumbai police and that an arrest warrant was issued against him. To make the story convincing, the caller shared a document displaying the victim's name and Aadhaar details and demanded information about his bank accounts, fixed deposits and pension funds.The fraudsters claimed his Aadhaar had been misused to open accounts for laundering money to a banned outfit. Posing as a "senior officer," they assured him of help but asked him to transfer funds for "verification" and warned him not to inform anyone. The victim broke his FDs and transferred the amount over three days. He later told his son, who urged him to approach the police.