Dehradun resident duped of Rs three crore under digital arrest, STF arrests accused from UP
PNS | DEHRADUN
The cyber crime police of the Uttarakhand Special Task Force (STF) arrested a man Manoj (27) from Bahraich in Uttar Pradesh on charges of duping a Dehradun resident of Rs three crore via digital arrest in May this year. The deputy superintendent of police of STF’s cyber crime police station in Dehradun Ankush Mishra said that the investigation began after a resident of Rajpur reported to the cyber crime police station that he had been digitally arrested by fraudsters impersonating Greater Mumbai Police and officials of Central Bureau of Investigstion (CBI). The victim received a call on May 20 claiming that a parcel, allegedly containing illegal items like drugs and multiple passports, had been intercepted at Mumbai Airport under his name. The caller provided some of the victim’s personal information, which heightened his fear and confusion. When he denied any knowledge of the parcel, he was told it will still be processed in his name, implying potential legal consequences. The call was then transferred to an individual posing as a senior police officer, who warned him of impending charges for drug trafficking and money laundering, Mishra said.
He informed that in a prolonged psychological manipulation, the accused kept the victim under digital arrest via WhatsApp video and voice calls, forbidding him from speaking with anyone else or leaving his home. To avoid supposed legal consequences, the victim was convinced to transfer all his funds to a designated account for verification purposes. In fear, the victim transferred over Rs three crore and emptied his accounts to comply with the fraudsters’ demands, the DSP said.
He informed that a dedicated team was formed to investigate the case. The team began an in-depth digital analysis and collected data from banks, service providers, Meta and Google to trace the suspects. After identifying the main accused, the team carried out operations across multiple locations, as the suspect frequently changed his whereabouts to evade capture, as per Mishra. After continuous surveillance and the use of advanced technical tools, the STF successfully arrested Manoj from Bahraich.The STF also recovered a mobile phone and a SIM card linked to the fraudulent bank account used for the transactions to scam the accused. The DSP said that further investigation revealed that this account had received over Rs six crore in suspicious transactions and had complaints registered against it from various states across India.
There are at least 76 complaints registered against his bank account from all across the country. It is possible that he duped hundreds of people of the country. The STF is investigating and will take further action accordingly, he added.
Mishra stated that there is nothing called digital arrest in Indian law and no legitimate government agency will ask for money or personal details through platforms like WhatsApp or Skype. He advised anyone receiving such requests to report them immediately to the nearest police station or cyber crime police.
