- A 21-year-old woman from Mysuru has been arrested for allegedly extorting Rs 20.5 lakh via fake digital arrest
- The victim was threatened with fabricated evidence, the police have said
- The police have said the victim transferred Rs 20.5 lakh to accounts controlled by the accused
A 21-year-old woman from Mysuru, who allegedly extorted Rs 20.5 lakh from a man by staging a fake "digital arrest", has been taken into custody by the Alappuzha Cyber Crime Police. The victim was terrorised with fabricated evidence and calls claiming to be from the headquarters of the Mumbai Police. Chandrika is among the key accused in the case.
According to the police, the fraudsters first contacted the private-company employee through WhatsApp.
Introducing herself as one Neha Sharma from Mumbai Police, the caller claimed that someone had opened fake bank accounts and got mobile numbers in the victim's name, and was using them to commit financial crimes worth crores.
The gang then accused the victim of receiving Rs 25 lakh as "commission" and said the "evidence" was available with Mumbai Police.
They allegedly threatened that he would be placed under a "digital arrest" unless he cooperated. To make the story believable, they sent doctored bank statements, ATM card, photos and forged documents through social media.
The victim was instructed to transfer all available funds from his existing bank accounts to two accounts provided by the fraudsters. He sent Rs 20.5 lakh, hoping the money would be returned "after verification".
When the accused stopped responding, the victim realised that he had been duped and filed a complaint on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal. The Cyber Crime unit registered a case on October 4.
Investigators found that Chandrika had received Rs 11.5 lakh in her personal bank account. A team from the Cyber Crime unit issued a notice at her Mysuru residence, but she failed to appear. She was finally arrested from Ashokapuram, Mysuru.
The police said the phone number linked to her bank account was registered in the name of one Surojith Haldar from West Bengal. A hunt is on for him.
Another suspect linked to a second beneficiary account is believed to be in Andhra Pradesh. Searches are in progress.
