Hyderabad: Telangana residents lost Rs 40 lakh in two recent digital arrest scams, though in one case, the victim’s friends intervened in time and got the transaction put on hold.
On Wednesday, September 3, a bank employee from Bengaluru, identified as Prathap Kesari Pradhan, 32, was arrested by Hyderabad cybercrime police for aiding fraudsters in a digital arrest scam.
The accused has been linked to seven cases nationwide, including two in Telangana.
In this particular case, a 60-year-old woman from Hyderabad was duped of Rs 10 lakh after fraudsters posing as police and RBI officials kept the victim on a long video call, threatening her with false charges and coercing her into transferring money.
The accused allegedly provided bank accounts to the fraudsters for these illegal transactions.
In another case, a 78-year-old man from Nizamabad district was duped by fraudsters posing as Mumbai police officers who put him and his wife under digital arrest for 50 hours.
The fraudsters had contacted the senior citizen and falsely claimed that his Aadhaar was linked to a bank account involved in a money laundering case. The accused then threatened the victim’s wife and kept them under digital arrest, from 9:00 am on August 31 to 11.30 am on September 2.
They sent fabricated legal notices in the name of the Supreme Court, CBl, TRAI, and RBI to gain credibility.
The fraudsters then coerced the victim into transferring over Rs 30 lakh to their account on the pretext of “verification of transactions.” To mislead the senior couple, they produced fake payment receipts of RBI and Enforcement Directorate.
They attempted to persuade the victim into taking a gold loan by pledging ornaments in his bank locker. It was then that the senior citizen approached one of his friends to pledge the ornaments in a private bank.
Sensing foul play, his friend immediately informed ‘1930 helpline’ and also approached the Cyber Crime Police Station (CCPS), Nizamabad.
In swift action, the officers prevented the senior citizen from pledging his gold for money and ensured that Rs 20 lakh from the defrauded amount was put on hold.
Efforts are underway to apprehend the accused.
Public advisory
Digital arrest is a term used in cyber fraud where victims are falsely told they are under surveillance or legal custody through digital means. They are often isolated via continuous video or call surveillance by fraudsters posing as officials, and manipulated into following instructions without alerting others – often leading to extortion or fraud.
Police have advised the public to remain vigilant and not respond to such fraudulent calls.
They have also asked the public to note that no arrests are made via WhatsApp/video calls and have asked not to share IDs, OTPs, or money with unknown callers and to report incidents immediately to 1930 or on the cyber police’s official website.
(With inputs from agencies)
