Retired I-T officer loses Rs 51 lakh in digital arrest scam

A retired income tax officer in Mumbai was duped of Rs 51 lakh by fraudsters posing as Lucknow police officers, who placed him under 'digital arrest' in a fake money laundering case. The Times of India reports that the victim received a video call from a person claiming to be a senior police officer, who said an account had been opened in the victim's name and used for money laundering. The fraudsters sent fake government documents and threatened him with arrest, leading him to transfer Rs 51 lakh in instalments to a bank account they provided.

Police arrested Mohammed Safwan Abdul Hameed, a mule account operator who allegedly provided bank accounts to the fraudsters and received a commission for facilitating transactions. Hameed was remanded in police custody. The investigation is ongoing, with police searching for other suspects. In a separate case covered by The Hindu, Cyberabad police arrested Deepak Kumar for a boss impersonation scam in which a saree retail outlet lost Rs 1 crore. Police recovered and restored the full amount to the victim within 10 days. The accused used a forged WhatsApp profile to impersonate the outlet's proprietor.