Mumbai, September 9, 2026: A 63-year-old retired Air Force officer from Sion, Mumbai, has become the latest target of cybercriminals attempting to extort money through a digital arrest scam.
Posing as senior police and anti-terror officials, the fraudsters allegedly threatened him with arrest in a money-laundering and terror-funding case involving transactions worth Rs 2.55 crore.
The victim, identified as Shridhar Atmaram Bari, a resident of Pratiksha Nagar in Sion East, lives with his wife. According to the FIR, Bari received a call on August 2 from an unknown mobile number.
The caller introduced himself as Mukesh Kumar from the Palghar Superintendent of Police’s office and subsequently connected Bari to a person claiming to be Inspector Vijaykumar.
Fraudsters Allege Money-Laundering Case
Vijaykumar allegedly told Bari that a money-laundering case had been registered against him and that funds linked to the case had been used for terrorist activities.
He further claimed that the investigation was being conducted by the Anti-Terrorist Squad headquarters in Lucknow and ordered Bari to appear in Palghar within two hours. He was allegedly threatened with arrest if he failed to comply.
When Bari said he could not travel to Palghar, the caller connected him through a WhatsApp video call to another person posing as Inspector Khanna of the Anti-Terrorist Squad headquarters in Lucknow.
Khanna allegedly told Bari that an ICICI Bank account had been opened in his name in Hubballi-Dharwad, Karnataka, and that transactions amounting to Rs 2.55 crore had taken place through the account between January 1 and January 29, 2026. Bari denied having opened any such account.
Fake NIA Document Sent
The fraudsters then sent him a PDF containing what appeared to be an NIA logo and a purported Confidentiality Agreement. The document allegedly warned him against disclosing details of the supposed investigation to anyone. Khanna also instructed Bari to write an application stating that he had not opened the ICICI Bank account and send it through WhatsApp.
The following day, another person claiming to be senior officer Premkumar Gautam contacted Bari on a WhatsApp video call. He allegedly sent a fake debit card bearing Bari’s details and claimed that his Aadhaar card had been used to open the account. Bari was asked to display his Aadhaar card on the video call, which he did.
Gautam then allegedly sought details of Bari’s bank accounts and the funds held in them, claiming that the money would be scrutinised and that he would receive a Clearance Certificate if the funds were not linked to money laundering.
Victim Refuses To Transfer Money
At this stage, Bari realised that he was being targeted by fraudsters. He refused to transfer any money and instead approached the police.
A case has been registered against the unidentified accused, including those allegedly impersonating police officials, preparing and sending forged documents, and operating the mobile numbers and WhatsApp accounts used in the fraud.
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Police have invoked relevant provisions of the Information Technology Act, including Section 66(D), along with applicable sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), and further investigation is underway.
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