‘Digital arrest’ with a twist: Scammers take ₹4 crore from 80-year-old man in Mumbai, also routed ₹1 crore via him

AN 80-year-old occupant of Kharghar in Navi bombay was allegedly cheated of ₹4.38 crore in a “digital stoppage” cozenage, with the scammers also crediting ₹1.02 crore plunk for into the account in a big twist.According to a complaint registered at the Navi Mumbai Cyber Police Station, the fraud began on November 18 when the victim received a phone call from a man claiming to be from “Cyber Data Protection of India”.“The caller alleged that a mobile number had been fraudulently obtained using the victim’s Aadhaar card and that a related offence had been registered at Nashik Police Station,” an investigating officer said.After the initial call, the victim, a retired director of an engineering and technical institute in Jaipur, received calls from several other scammers who claimed to be from numerous investigation agencies, including the Nashik police, the crime branch, and even central agencies.It was falsely claimed that the victim’s Aadhaar details had been misused by a terror-linked person to open a bank account for money laundering. He was told that an arrest warrant had been issued against him, but that it was being temporarily withheld due to his advanced age.The accused even shared forged FIRs, RBI letters, Enforcement Directorate (ED) notices, and fabricated Supreme Court communications on WhatsApp, all designed to appear authentic.All this was done after making the victim join a video call and telling him not to disclose the matter to anyone due to “national security concerns”.The scam and the ₹1.02 crore twistThe victim, who was by now terrified of the gravity of the alleged charges against him, was instructed to withdraw his savings and investments and transfer the funds into so-called “RBI verification accounts”, police said.A twist came on November 24 when ₹1.02 crore was credited to the victim's bank account. The complainant was then asked to share transaction details and transfer the money onward to other accounts.A senior cyber police official clarified that this amount did not belong to the victim. “The ₹1.02 crore credited to the complainant’s account was money siphoned from other cyber fraud victims. His account was misused as a mule account for layering and transferring illicit funds,” the official said.The victim transferred money multiple times to different bank accounts between November 26, 2025, and January 9, 2026, believing he was complying with official verification procedures.The fraud came to light when the victim’s Bank of Maharashtra account was frozen, after Nagpur City Cyber Police flagged suspicious transactions linked to cybercrime.The victim approached cyber authorities after the revelation and lodged a complaint on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal on January 10, before recording his statement at the Cyber Police Station.Police confirmed that the total financial loss amounted to ₹4,38,62,210.A case has been registered against unknown persons for impersonation, cheating, forgery, and offences under the Information Technology Act. Investigations are underway to trace the bank accounts, phone numbers, and IP addresses used in the fraud.Similar ‘national security’ scam in DelhiIn a similar case which came to light just days earlier, an elderly doctor couple living in South Delhi’s Greater Kailash was allegedly duped of ₹14.85 crore after cybercriminals kept them under what police described as a “digital arrest” for more than two weeks, officials said on Saturday.The fraud allegedly took place between December 24 and January 9, during which the accused impersonated officials from law enforcement agencies and pressured the couple into transferring large sums of money to multiple bank accounts, according to the police cited by PTI news agency.An e-FIR was registered on Saturday, and the cybercrime unit of Delhi Police has launched an investigation, the report added.Recounting the ordeal, the victim, Indira Taneja, said the first call came on December 24 around noon.“On December 24, around noon, I received a call from someone claiming to be from TRAI, saying my number would be disconnected due to obscene calls and complaints,” she said.She added that the caller accused her of money laundering and claimed that an FIR and arrest warrants had been issued in Maharashtra.“They connected me to a man in a police uniform on a video call,” she said.According to her, the man on the video call alleged that a Canara Bank account in her name had been used in a major fraud linked to national security.Police said the couple, both doctors, had returned from the United States and had been residing in Greater Kailash since 2016. Their children are settled abroad, a factor investigators believe the accused exploited.According to the complaint, the cybercriminals threatened and forced them to stay on continuous phone and video calls for days at a stretch.“He said that since I was saying I had come from America to serve India, this was a matter of national security. If I were involved in this, I would have to come to Bombay and would be arrested,” she said.Police said the fraud came to light only after the calls abruptly stopped on January 9, following which the couple approached the authorities.Despite repeatedly informing the callers about their medical condition and lack of support, the pressure continued, Taneja said, eventually resulting in a loss of ₹14.85 crore.Delhi Police said the investigation is ongoing and efforts are being made to trace the bank accounts and individuals involved in the alleged scam.