Mumbai: Doctor duped by scammers; got `digital arrest` for 8 days

Amid the rising concerns of cyber crimes happening every day, a 70-year-old doctor was cheated by cyber criminals of Rs 3 crore in Mumbai. A doctor was kept under “digital arrest” for eight days after being accused of involvement in a non-existent money laundering scam, a Mumbai police official said on Saturday.

It has been reported that around the month of May, the victim got a call from a person identifying himself as telecom department staffer Amit Kumar. The scammer who goes by the name Amit told her a SIM card had been bought with her personal details for use in criminal activities.

The official, while enlightening about the incident, said, “She then got a call from another person who identified himself as Crime Branch Officer Samadhan Pawar. He told the victim that her bank account and debit card details were found in a raid at the residence of an airline company owner who was earlier arrested for money laundering and is currently out on medical bail.”

The accused sent her multiple documents, claiming these were from probe agencies like the CBI and Enforcement Directorate as well as the RBI. After successfully manipulating the doctor, the accused was able to get her into video surveillance.

“A man in a police uniform also spoke to her husband on a video call, all of which convinced her about the case. She was then put under video surveillance, which these fraudsters call digital arrest, for eight days. She was made to report to them every hour during this period. Out of fear, she transferred Rs 3 crore into various bank accounts given to her,” an official said, as per PTI.

However, soon after she realised that something was wrong, the doctor approached the West Region cyber police station on June 5, after which a case was registered, the official said.

As per an official, “Soon after the complaint, a search probe was launched against the accused scammers. However, authorities were able to find out that the accused converted Rs 82 lakh in cryptocurrency.” Adding that efforts were on to nab them and retrieve the lost money.

(With PTI Inputs)

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