'It all disappeared': Ex-banker reveals how he lost life savings worth ₹23 crore to digital arrest, fraud

AMid the lift in "digital stop" cases, an ex-banker has gone public with his story and revealed how he missed his life-time nest egg worth ₹23 crores to digital fraud.Retired banker Naresh Malhotra lost his entire life savings after he fell prey to digital fraud. As per a report by PTI, the 78-year-old man was kept confined to his house for over a month under "digital arrest."On August 1, Malhotra received a call from a man claiming to be from a mobile company, who told him that his Aadhar card had been used in Mumbai in connection to terror funding cases."They told me that I needed to talk to the Mumbai Police regarding the same matter and if they approved, the connection would continue, or else it would be disconnected and the matter reported," Malhotra told PTI.The banker added that he was directed to people posing as Mumbai Police officers, who reiterated the claim that his Aadhar had been used for "terror funding, terror activities and many other serious offences."He told PTI that the men on the call warned him against revealing this to anyone and started to inquire about his bank savings and the amount of money he had in his account."They wanted to know how much money I had in my bank account. I told them I had almost ₹14 lakh. They asked me to transfer the amount to their account, assuring me that it was only for verification," he recalled.Malhotra added that the scammers have even sent him forged RBI certificates after each transfer. He was told that his money would be returned and a nodal officer from the Reserve Bank of India would reach out to him regarding the matter.However, after he sent the first transfer, the scammers got greedy and began to probe into his mutual funds, SIPs and other financial assets."They said they would first verify 25 per cent of my assets and then continue with the rest according to their system. They threatened me that if I didn't comply, they would make my family members co-accused in terror cases," the former banker told news agency PTI.Under pressure and constant monitoring from the scammers, Malhotra visited three different banks to liquidate his investments and transfer the remaining amount to the account numbers he had been given.With each transfer, he was provided with more fake RBI certificates. Malhotra was subject to this scam from August 1 to September 4. However, on September 14, the fake Mumbai officers told him to transfer another ₹5 crore in the name of the Registrar of the Supreme Court into a private bank account based in West Bengal."They told me this was the final step and that the Supreme Court was now monitoring the case. I refused to send the money and told them I would deposit the amount directly with the Supreme Court. I also said I would go to Hauz Khas Police Station and surrender," said Malhotra.After this transfer, he stopped receiving calls. Days after this, the ex-banker realised that he had been defrauded and had lost all his life savings."I spent my life savings building security for my old age. In one month, it all disappeared because I trusted the wrong people. I hope my story serves as a warning," a teary-eyed Malhotra told PTI.Delhi police launches probeAfter he reported that matter, the Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations (IFSO) unit of Delhi Police, which specialises in cyber fraud cases, launched a probe into the matter.Police said they have managed to freeze around ₹2.67 crores in several bank accounts."The money trail revealed that the funds were layered across multiple accounts and withdrawn from different parts of the country to evade detection. Over 4,000 layered accounts were used to siphon off the funds," revealed an officer close to the investigation.