Fraudsters pose as police officers blackmail 74-yr-old to pay Rs 97 lakh

A probe has been launched into the phone numbers and bank accounts used by the cyber fraudsters.

Date: August 6, 2024

The fraudsters posing as police officers threatened a 74-year-old Pune man to arrest him for ‘sending obscene messages’, ‘money laundering’ and in matters of ‘national security’.

The senior citizen went through a harrowing ordeal of cyber blackmail over five days in which he was coerced to remain on a phone call and go to the bank multiple times to make large online transfers amounting Rs 97 lakh.

Later, an FIR was registered in the case by the Baner resident who is retired.

How did the fraud unfold?

The man received a call from a person who identified himself as an officer from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in the third week of July.

The caller told the complainant that his phone number would be blocked in two hours because obscene messages were being sent from his number to many people in Mumbai. The complainant urged the caller not to disconnect and was given a number to call.

The imposter who answered this call told the complainant that his bank account was being misused for money laundering and an arrest warrant had been issued in his name. He was told to appear before Mumbai crime branch or he would be arrested from his home.

The complainant pleaded that he was a senior citizen and he should be spared from arrest. The fraudsters told him that they would help me by way of ‘priority investigation’ and directed to submit all details of his bank accounts, deposits, investments etc.

After three days, a man who identified himself with the name of a serving IPS officer from Maharashtra, told the complainant that he would undergo a thorough verification.

The complainant was warned against discussing the matter with anyone including family. He was told to transfer Rs 55 lakh from his savings. He was instructed to go to the bank while remaining on a call from the ‘officer’ for ‘surveillance purposes.’

Over the next two days, he was told his investigation was also being done in a matter of ‘national security’ and made to transfer Rs 20 lakh and Rs 22 lakh while remaining on the phone with the caller posing as a police officer.

He was told that all the money would be transferred back to him after the verification process.

The complainant tried calling all the numbers a while later. But there was no response. After realising that he had been cheated, he approached the cybercrime police station.

A probe has been launched into the phone numbers and bank accounts used by the cyber fraudsters.