A retired professor, who taught at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), lost Rs4 lakh after falling prey to the digital arrest scam wherein fraudsters accuse the target of illegal activities and threaten action from law agencies. The Powai police have registered an FIR against an unidentified individual on November 16.
According to the FIR, Lata Narayan, 72, from Powai received a call on November 13 around 1.47pm from an unknown number. Claiming to be an employee of the State Bank of India, the caller said that her credit card payment was due. Befuddled, the professor told the fake banker that she does not own any credit card. The caller abruptly disconnected the call, saying that he would file a police complaint.
Later that day around 2.18pm, the complainant received a WhatsApp video call. A person claiming to be a police officer asked the senior citizen to show her Aadhaar card. During the call, another individual claiming to be a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officer told the retired professor that her Aadhaar card was linked to criminal activity.
He further informed her that a Canara Bank account in her name had been involved in black money transactions and that the bank manager had been arrested. He added that her account had been used in several such transactions and warned that she would be arrested. On the pretext of an online verification, the caller then asked the woman to share all her bank account details, which she provided.
Next day around 10.06am, she received another video call from a different number. This caller claimed to be from the CBI court and reiterated the accusation that her account was involved in black money transactions. He advised her to break her fixed deposit held in ICICI account and transfer funds. Frightened, the retired professor deposited Rs4 lakh in the account mentioned by fraudsters, who promptly withdrew the money.
Later, she shared the incident with her husband, who sought advice from an acquaintance and were told that they had been scammed. The elderly immediately filed an online complaint. Subsequently, the Powai police registered a case against unknown individuals under sections 318(4) (cheating) and 319(2) (cheating by personation) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
