Mumbai: In a shocking case of cyber fraud, a 30-year-old man from Byculla was duped of Rs 8.70 lakh by fraudsters who threatened him with a ‘digital arrest’ under the guise of a police and narcotics investigation. Kalachowki Police have registered a case and initiated a probe against the unidentified accused.
The victim, Amol, a resident of Anant Ganpat Pawar Marg in Byculla, works with a private company. On June 29 last year, he received a call from an unknown number. The caller claimed to be from the FedEx office in Andheri and alleged that Amol’s Aadhaar card had been used to send a suspicious parcel from Mumbai to Iran.
The parcel was said to contain 450 grams of MD drugs, four expired Iranian passports, five debit cards, and four kilograms of clothing. The caller further claimed that the parcel had been seized by customs at Mumbai Airport and that a case had been registered against Amol at the Andheri Police Station.
The scammer then escalated the situation by introducing impersonators posing as officers from the Andheri police and the Narcotics Department, directing Amol to connect via Skype for a so-called "official investigation." During the video call, the fraudsters pretended to initiate legal action and convinced Amol that he had been digitally arrested.
In panic, Amol followed their instructions and ended up transferring Rs 8.70 lakh from his bank account, believing it was for verification and that the money would be returned. It was only later that Amol realized he had been conned.
Amol then approached the Kalachowki Police Station and lodged a complaint. The police have registered a case under sections related to cheating and IT Act violations and are currently tracking down the cyber fraudsters involved.
