Chandigarh: An 83-year-old retired bank officer lost Rs 29.80 lakh after cyber fraudsters allegedly posed as Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officials and threatened him with arrest in a fake money-laundering case.
According to the police, the victim, identified as Shripal Jain, a Sector 22 resident, received a call on September 9 from a person claiming to be a CBI officer. The caller allegedly told him that an arrest warrant had been issued against him and that his name had emerged in a money-laundering investigation.
The fraudsters allegedly kept Jain under prolonged psychological pressure and warned him against contacting the police or his family. Believing the claims, he transferred money in multiple instalments to bank accounts provided by the accused.
The callers allegedly continued demanding more money even after receiving Rs 29.80 lakh. When they sought another Rs 10 lakh, Jain informed his son, who became suspicious and alerted him to the possibility of fraud.
The victim and his son subsequently approached the Cyber Crime Police Station, following which an FIR was registered on September 22 under relevant provisions of the Information Technology Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
Police said the money was transferred through multiple bank accounts and efforts were underway to trace the transactions. The investigation is ongoing.
The case follows the modus operandi commonly seen in “digital arrest” scams, where fraudsters impersonate law-enforcement officials and use threats of arrest or legal action to pressure victims into transferring money.
