PNS | DEHRADUN
The Uttarakhand Special Task Force (STF) arrested a 19-year-old man Neeraj Bhatt from Jaipur, Rajasthan, for scamming a Dehradun resident of over Rs 2.25 crore while keeping him under digital arrest for nine days.
According to the deputy superintendent of police of the cybercrime police station of STF, Ankush Mishra, the accused posed as a Mumbai Cyber Crime officer and used WhatsApp video calls to intimidate the victim into believing he was implicated in a money laundering case. The victim, a resident of Niranjanpur, Dehradun, reported that on September 9, 2024, he received a call alleging that his Aadhaar card and mobile number were linked to fraudulent transactions.
The caller, impersonating a police officer, reportedly coerced the victim into complying with their demands under the threat of arrest, seizure of assets and legal penalties. Mishra said that the cybercriminals further escalated their scam by conducting a video call where the victim saw a man in police uniform sitting in a staged police office setup. They issued fake notices and demanded the victim remain under their constant surveillance via WhatsApp. For nine days, the victim was compelled to send periodic updates every three hours, restricted from travel and intimidated into transferring funds into accounts provided by the scammers. The victim ultimately lost Rs 2.27 crores before realising he had been duped, the DSP said.
He stated that the STF launched an investigation and the STF senior superintendent of police Navneet Singh formed a specialised team to uncover the gang’s operations. By analysing technical evidence such as call logs, bank details and digital footprints, the STF tracked the primary accused to Jaipur. The arrest led to the recovery of a mobile phone and a SIM card linked to the AU Small Finance Bank account used in the scam. Investigations revealed that this account had been reported in similar fraud cases in Arunachal Pradesh and Maharashtra, he said. The DSP urged citizens to remain vigilant against such scams. He said that no legitimate government agency issues notices or demands money over WhatsApp and advised reporting any suspicious calls or messages to the Cyber Crime Helpline 1930 or through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal www.cybercrime.gov.in.
