A 33-year-old Byculla woman was duped of over Rs 27 lakh after conmen posing as government officials and even a senior police officer spun an elaborate web of lies involving Aadhaar misuse, illegal bank accounts, and money laundering.

The victim, a business advisor by profession, received a call on August 18 from a man claiming to be from the telecom regulatory department. The conversation started as a warning from a woman posing as a department employee about the victim`s phone being blocked, but quickly spiralled into threats about being arrested. The employee, Priya Sharma, claimed that the victim’s Aadhaar had been used to open 13 bank accounts linked to human trafficking and money laundering.