Mumbai senior citizen put under ‘digital arrest’, loses Rs 16.5 lakh

A 75yearold retired civic official has allegedly been duped of Rs 165 lakh by cyber fraudsters who posed as ATS and NIA personnel and placed him under digital arrest for interrogation claiming his name surfaced in the Delhi bomb blast case police said reported news agency PTIThe victim a resident of Andheri East in Mumbai approached the West Region Cyber Police Station on Monday an official said on Wednesday reported PTIScam linked to fake probe into Delhi blast caseAn explosiveladen vehicle detonated outside the historic Red Fort in Delhi on November 10 last year killing over 12 personsAccording to the police the victim a retired official of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation received a call on December 11 from unidentified persons claiming to be officers from the Delhi antiterrorism department The caller threatened him saying his name had surfaced in the Delhi bomb blast case and that he needed to be interrogated secretly reported PTIThe caller then asked the victim to download the Signal application where he received a video call During the call one of the fraudsters posed as National Investigation Agency NIA officer Sadanand Date reported PTIVictim warned of money laundering caseThe caller told the victim that a bank account linked to his mobile number had allegedly received Rs 7 crore through money laundering activities and warned that he would be arrested in the case the police saidCiting the seriousness of the matter and its alleged connection to national security the caller instructed the victim not to discuss the issue with anyone reported PTIMoney transferred for lsquoverificationrsquo caller vanishesThe fraudsters claimed that the agency needed to verify whether his investments and deposits were from legal sources and asked the victim to transfer his money to certain bank accounts for verification a police official saidAccordingly the victim deposited Rs 165 lakh following which the caller blocked his numberCase registered against unidentified accusedThe victim later approached the cyber police and lodged a complaint based on which a case has been registered against unidentified persons the official saidDigital arrest is a growing form of cybercrime in which fraudsters pose as law enforcement court officials or personnel from government agencies to intimidate victims through audio and video calls They hold the victims hostage and put pressure on them to pay moneySupreme Court MHA take note of rising digital arrest casesIn December last year the Supreme Court asked the Central Bureau of Investigation CBI to carry out a unified panIndia probe into cases of digital arrest fraud It had passed the directions in a suo motu case registered on the complaint of an elderly couple from HaryanaThe Ministry of Home Affairs MHA on January 15 informed the apex court that it had formed a highlevel committee to examine issues regarding the digital arrest fraudWith inputs from PTI