The cyber cell attached to the Mira Bhayandar-Vasai Virar (MBVV) police helped a 23-year-old techie recover Rs. 10,99,999 which he had lost in a ‘digital arrest’ scam, which has emerged as one of the latest techniques used by cyber crooks to cheat people of their hard-earned money.
According to the cyber police, they received a complaint from Dhiraj Gupta-an engineer living in Mira Road stating that he received a video call on 16, December, 2024 from a person who claimed to be a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officer.
Accusing him for being involved in money-laundering and drugs transportation cases, the caller told him that he was under digital arrest and warned him not to speak about the ongoing enquiry. He later asked him to deposit money in a specified bank account. The terrified complainant arranged the money by availing instant personal loans from various financial institutions and transferred Rs.10,99,999 within two hours. Although the fraudster did not show his face during the video call, the screen sported the CBI logo to create a sense of authenticity and deceive the unsuspecting victim.
However, when he revealed about the incident to his brother he realised that he had been duped following which he immediately registered a complaint with the cyber police and on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCCRP) portal. A teal led by police inspector (cyber cell)-Sujitkumar Gunjkar and sub-inspector- Prasad Shenolkar started investigations and reverted the entire amount by establishing contact and conducting regular follow-ups with the concerned bank in which the ill-gotten wealth had been parked.
While the reversal transactions to the bank account of the complainant was conducted following judicial orders, the cyber cell gave him a symbolic cheque confirming the reversals. The CBI has warned citizens about scams where criminals impersonate their officials to extort money by using the agency’s logo and fake documents.
