Cyber fraudsters scammed a 75-year-old retired airline staffer out of ₹1 crore through a fake digital arrest scam, officials said on Thursday. The incident took place between January 15 and 23. Regarding the matter, a case was registered on Wednesday in the Cyber Police Station, they added.
According to the cyber police, the senior citizen, who is a resident of Wanwadi, lost ₹1 crore to the fraudsters who posed as Delhi Crime Branch officials. "The fraudsters falsely accused the retired airline staffer of involvement in money laundering cases. They sent her fake legal notices and kept her under digital arrest for four days. They coerced her into transferring the money. They also tried to force her to take a loan and transfer more money. After this, the victim realised she had been cheated and lodged a police complaint," said the police.
Speaking to The Free Press Journal, Senior Police Inspector Swapnali Shinde of the Cyber Police Station said, "The fraudsters sent her a dummy arrest warrant and fake notices related to money laundering cases. They told her to download a mobile application, through which they forced the victim to stay connected in front of her cell phone camera. The victim was under digital arrest for four days. Later, the fraudsters promised to help her resolve the case. They asked her to transfer money in exchange for their help."
"The victim went to the bank and transferred money from two different bank accounts through two RTGS transfers of ₹50 lakh each. The fraudsters kept demanding more money from the victim. When she refused and explained she had no more money, the fraudsters asked her to take a loan and send it. At this point, she realised that she had been cheated. Subsequently, a case has been registered at the cyber police station," the senior PI added.
