Scammers pose as police to extort money from Dehradun chief municipal health officer
Friday, 30 AUGUST 2024 | PNS | DEHRADUN
Some cyber fraudsters reportedly tried to scam the Dehradun chief municipal health officer Dr Avinash Khanna on Thursday by claiming that his daughter had been arrested by the police in Lucknow. Khanna said that he received a WhatsApp call from the number +923196055255 around 11:33 AM on Thursday in which the caller claimed that Khanna’s daughter had been arrested by the police in Lucknow. The caller, attempting to instill fear and urgency, stated that his daughter was pleading for help and that they were willing to settle the case for Rs 80,000, Khanna said. He stated that the caller instructed him to transfer the amount either to a specific SBI bank account registered under the name Saddam Hussain or via Google Pay to the number 7070342813. “Sensing something amiss, I immediately called my daughter to verify the claim and found out that she was safe and not arrested. It became clear that this was a fraudulent attempt to extort money. I noticed that the number was probably from Pakistan. I reported the matter to the cyber cell of Dehradun to raise awareness and prevent others from falling victim to such scams,” Khanna said. The intention behind sharing this experience is to inform the public and ensure that no one else becomes a target of such deceitful schemes which are sadly increasing these days, he added.
