68-Year-Old Retired Woman Duped Of ₹60.5 Lakh In Digital Arrest Scam; Forced To Mortgage 52 Tola Gold

Mumbai: A 68-year-old retired woman from Kanjurmarg East was allegedly duped of ₹60.5 lakh in a digital arrest scam after cyber fraudsters posing as police officers threatened to arrest her in a money laundering case. The accused allegedly forced her to mortgage 52 tolas of gold to raise funds and transfer the money to bank accounts provided by them.

According to the FIR, 68 year old the victim, a retired employee of Maharashtra Credit Cooperative Society, received a call on September 28, 2026, from a person identifying himself as Ajay Sharma from the Data Protection Department. He allegedly told her that 20 people had filed complaints against her and asked her to contact the Panchavati Police Station in Nashik.

When she explained that she could not visit the police station because of a leg problem, the caller allegedly instructed her to lodge a complaint online and provided another mobile number. A person answering the call introduced himself as Sub-Inspector Sandeep Rao from the Panchavati Police Station and gave a purported police badge number.

Rao allegedly claimed that her Aadhaar card had been misused and that she was facing money laundering cases. He further threatened that an arrest warrant had been issued against her, claiming that 247 senior citizens had already been arrested. The accused allegedly asked her not to disclose the matter to anyone and instructed her to delete certain numbers from her mobile phone.

On September 29, the woman allegedly received a WhatsApp video call from another number. The caller asked her about the gold she possessed, including jewellery belonging to her, her daughter-in-law and her mother-in-law. The accused then instructed her to withdraw the gold kept in a bank locker and send photographs of all the jewellery.

The fraudsters allegedly directed her to visit a Muthoot Finance branch in Vikhroli and mortgage the gold to obtain a loan. On September 30, representatives of the finance company visited her residence, verified her documents and photographed her before taking her to the branch. The gold weighed approximately 52 tolas, but the company reportedly sanctioned a loan of ₹25 lakh, after deducting applicable charges.

The loan amount was credited to her Punjab National Bank account in Bhandup. The accused subsequently instructed her to visit the bank, collect RTGS forms and transfer the money to bank accounts they provided.

According to the FIR, the fraudsters threatened that she would face digital arrest and that her life could be in danger if she failed to transfer the money. Under fear and pressure, she allegedly transferred money through RTGS transactions on October 1, 3 and 6, 2026, taking photographs of the transaction receipts and sending them to the accused for verification.

The accused allegedly instructed her to tell bank employees that she needed the money for her son's ongoing house construction. They also directed her to keep video calls active while visiting the bank and making the transfers so they could monitor her activities. The fraudsters allegedly assured her that the money had been deposited with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and would be returned to her. However, after October 6, the accused stopped contacting her. When she tried calling them on October 12 and 13, nobody answered, following which she realised that she had been cheated.

On October 14, she contacted the national cybercrime helpline 1930 and registered a complaint, receiving an acknowledgement number. The East Region Cyber Police have registered a case against three unidentified accused for allegedly cheating her of ₹60.5 lakh through the digital arrest scam. Further investigation is underway.

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