CBI Probes ₹2 Crore Digital Arrest Scam Linked To Mumbai, Punjab Retiree Duped By Fake Police

Mumbai, March 27: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has started investigation into a case wherein a 61-year-old retired public servant from Punjab was duped by scammers to the tune of over Rs 2 crore in a digital arrest fraud.

The scammers falsely claimed to the victim that a SIM card issued in his name was being used for illegal activities in Mumbai and that a bank account had been opened in a Mumbai-based bank through which money laundering had been done on a large scale, and induced the victim to send money to different bank accounts.

Victim targeted through fake police claims

According to the CBI, the complainant is a resident of Jalandhar. The scam was committed during the period from May 9, 2025 till June 12, 2025. The scammers approached the victim claiming to be police officials and stated that a SIM card issued in his name was being used for illegal activities in Mumbai and that a bank account had been opened in a Mumbai-based bank through which money laundering had been carried out on a large scale, and induced the victim to send money to different bank accounts.

The scammers told the victim not to share anything with anyone during the 'investigation', citing the National Security Act, and placed the victim under a digital arrest.

Fake RBI assurance used to gain trust

The scammers told the victim to transfer money to different bank accounts, stating that the money would be verified by the RBI. In order to gain the trust of the victim, the scammers also sent a bogus RBI letter to the victim on WhatsApp assuring that the money transferred by the victim would be refunded to his bank account once the inspection of his finances was complete. The victim transferred Rs 2 crore to different beneficiary bank accounts shared by the scammers.

Case transferred to CBI for detailed probe

Later, the victim began suspecting the claims of the scammers and realised that he had been duped. He then approached the police and got an offence registered in the matter with the cyber crime police, Jalandhar, on June 16, 2025.

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On the directions of the High Court in Punjab, the case was transferred to the CBI for further investigation as the case required an in-depth probe. A case has been registered by the CBI in this regard on Wednesday on charges of cheating and cheating by personation by using computer resource.

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