Hyderabad: A 73-year-old retired lecturer, Ch Purshotham Sharma, fell victim to a digital arrest scam, losing Rs 45.5 lakh to cybercriminals posing as CBI officials.
The incident began on November 12, when Sharma received a call from someone claiming that authorities had intercepted a parcel containing banned drugs.
The caller falsely implicated Sharma by stating that his Aadhaar number was linked to the parcel and warned him of being involved in a money laundering case.
To avoid arrest, the caller provided a contact number for a supposed CBI officer in Ahmedabad, instructing Sharma to cooperate.
During a WhatsApp video call, the impersonator, dressed in a police uniform, threatened immediate legal action if Sharma did not comply.
Following this intimidation, the retired lecturer shared his bank account details and transferred funds through various platforms such as Google Pay, Paytm, net banking, and RTGS to multiple accounts as directed by the scammers.
To further deceive him, the fraudsters issued fake receipts that appeared to be from the Supreme Court, complete with a registrar’s signature, confirming the payments.
Over several days, these transactions accumulated to a total of Rs 45.5 lakh. Realizing he had been scammed, Sharma approached the Rachakonda cyber crime police.
In response to his complaint, authorities registered a case under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and sections 66(C) and 66(D) of the IT Act, which pertains to identity theft and cheating by impersonation.
The Rachakonda cyber crime police have since initiated an investigation into the matter.
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