Mumbai, Jan 16: A 77-year-old man fell prey to scammers in a digital arrest fraud and lost Rs 45 lakh. The scammers posed as an IPS officer posted in Mumbai to dupe the victim.
How the scam began
According to the police, the complainant is a resident of Nagpur. On November 3, the complainant received a phone call from a person claiming to be from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). The caller told the complainant that a mobile number had been issued in his name and was used for criminal activities.
The next day, the complainant received another phone call, during which the caller informed him that a bank account had been opened in his name and had been used in a money laundering case. The scammer also sent bogus documents related to the alleged money laundering case to the complainant.
Scammers impersonate officials
One of the scammers also posed as IPS officer Vishwas Nangre-Patil, who is posted in Mumbai. The fraudsters additionally posed as officers from the Enforcement Directorate and Mumbai Police and threatened to arrest the complainant. They also induced him to share details of his properties and investments.
The scammers told the complainant that he would have to transfer money to a bank account that would be verified by government machinery and returned to him after the verification process was completed. From November 3 to December 23, the scammers induced the complainant to transfer Rs 45 lakh to different beneficiary bank accounts, police said.
Victim realises fraud
After paying the money, the complainant tried contacting the scammers but was unable to reach them. He later visited Mumbai and met Nangre-Patil, only to realise that he had been duped by fraudsters. He then approached the police and got an offence registered in the matter.
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Case registered
A case has been registered under Sections 204 (personating a public servant), 318 (cheating), 319 (cheating by personation), 336 (forgery), 338 (forgery of valuable security, will, etc.), and 340 (forged document or electronic record and using it as genuine) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, and Sections 66C (identity theft) and 66D (cheating by personation using computer resources) of the Information Technology Act.
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