In a distressing case of cybercrime, a retired Air Force sergeant from Faridabad was duped of Rs 5 lakh by fraudsters posing as officials from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The victim, Aditya Kumar Jha (55), was placed under what is termed a "digital arrest" for 55 hours, during which he was coerced into transferring the money, police reported on Wednesday.

Currently employed as a clerk at Punjab National Bank, Jha became the target of this elaborate scam on October 6, a day after he had returned from election duty in Haryana. Around 9:50 am, while his wife and son were at the Jhandewalan temple in Delhi, Jha received a video call from an unknown number.