In the comments section, several users shared similar experiences. (Representative pic)
Co-founder and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Pepper Content, Rishabh Shekhar, has claimed that his father recently received an extortion call from an alleged police officer who demanded Rs 1 lakh from him. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Mr Shekhar said that the cop told his father that he was caught with a rapist and demanded money if the father wanted to avoid a case being filed against him. He also stated that the number the "police officer" called from also had a display picture of a cop.
"My father got a call from this number, with a dp of a police officer claiming I have been caught with a rapist and to protect me from media and FIR, he will need to pay him 1 lakh. At that exact moment, my number wasn't reachable. Thankfully, my father did not give in," Mr Shekhar wrote while sharing the screenshot of the contact info displayed on his phone.
"This is becoming a serious hazard. There needs to be a serious crackdown on such scam, and stop this robbing of innocent people off their life savings. My father is shook and can't comprehend how someone can stoop so low and do such a thing. Posting it here for awareness," the COO added in the following tweet. He also urged people to educate their families and loved ones about such scams so don't fall prey to them.
Mr Shekhar's post, shared on Wednesday, not only caught the attention of 1.2 million X users but also the Mumbai Police. The department urged the COO to contact the nearest police station. " Request you to report the matter at your nearest police station for further support," Mumbai Police tweeted.
Meanwhile, in the comments section, several users shared similar experiences. "You are the 2nd person I've heard of in the last week itself who faced this scam. This scam plays on so many levels," wrote one user. "We faced similar problems and the mobile number seems to be from Pakistan. Despite tagging home minister and cyber police etc no response," commented another.
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"The same incident happened with my father last week he panicked and fell into his trap. Fortunately, I was at home and took control of the situation. Random no with +92 pin called on WhatsApp started a conversation after introducing himself as a policeman," a third user wrote.
"Something similar happened to me also. One day when I was in my class, my mother received a call with the name Punjab Police, they told her that they knew my current location and would kidnap me. My mom called the coordinator to confirm my presence. These scams are way too common," added a fourth.
Mr Shekhar's post has garnered more than 400 comments and 1.2 million views.